


Limestone Limelight

by KandySongbird



Category: Hollow Knight (Video Games)
Genre: AU, Gen, and by that I mean Sythia is a gay disaster, feelings are hurt and I regret nothing, may be some oc x cannon but it's mostly one sided and not very important so??, ok so this is super self indulgent
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-13
Updated: 2020-02-19
Packaged: 2021-01-25 16:18:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 15
Words: 47,146
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21359107
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KandySongbird/pseuds/KandySongbird
Summary: In a kingdom ravaged by a strange plague, a carefree lady beetle comes across a strange small bug. Though not one for troublesome things, Sythia can't help but want to know more about her new friend.An AU of the events leading up to the destruction of Hallownest in which Hallownest isn't destroyed.
Comments: 9
Kudos: 45





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hi and welcome to probably the most self indulgent thing I've ever made. This is quite literally a bunch of 3am thoughts I decided to write in full just for the fun of it.
> 
> A heads up. Things don't actually start happening until chapter 3 so please bare with me and enjoy these bugs while they are still happy.

Chirps and skittering filled the damp warm air as a lone bug wandered listlessly through the kingdom’s greens. A small bush rustled as legs appeared beneath and the small creature hurried away from the larger bug. Sythia cast a glance to the fleeing thing. Her antenna quivered in amusement as she watched the mosscreep. “You’ll have to be stealthier if you wish to flee safely small one.” She cooed to herself, continuing on her way, leaving the small bug be. Casting her attention to the cavern wall, she admired the small trickles of light that found its way into the green cavern, the primary suspect for the lush green that thrived in the caves. She paused for a second, taking in the calm of the Greenpath. Sythia, stretched out in a rather relaxed manner, opening the red and black spotted shell on her back, fluttering her delicate wings in a satisfying stretch. Nothing could beat a stroll through Greenpath, throwing scythes resting safely on her back, the cool metal a contrast to the humid air, sending wonderful chills down her back. 

The lady beetle idly strolled through the side caverns of the lush caves. They were a stark contrast to the larger, more built areas, filled with elegant overhangs, spacious halls and small vendors who preferred to set up shop away from the business of the crossroads or the city. While the infrastructure of Hallownest was always carefully crafted and wonderful to behold, the natural beauty of vines and ferns made for more interesting scenery. There were also less bugs who were willing to walk through these paths, they were populated with fooleaters and squits and an unarmed bug would have trouble defending themselves. The lack of other bugs made the stroll even nicer in Sythia’s opinion. Every sound was clearer when it was just her.

Though she enjoyed her solitude every so often, there was a destination she had in mind. A small humble settlement that resided away from the larger, grander stone spirals and arches, inhabited by the native bugs of Greenpath. A sweet group of fuzzy bugs who she found made for wonderful company. Among them she had a certain small insect in mind. Sythia made her way through the well walked paths, taking note of the small flocks of maskflies that flew overhead. The walk was a pleasant one, undisturbed by the one or two infected beasts she may have encountered at a different time.

As the cavern opened up, the smell of acidic water embraced her. To any other bug it would have been unpleasant, a strong burning scent, but she had gotten used to the smells and sounds in the green caves and they were greatly welcomed. A few small stone structures were sitting in the far side of the cavern, nowhere near as grand as the buildings in the main caves of Greenpath and nowhere near as organised, but they were familiar, much like a second home to Sythia and admittedly more homely than her own residence in the lower, more hazardous parts of Greenpath. Skirting around a few houses, waving as she was greeted by passing mosskin, she reached the small house she was planning on visiting. Vines grew up the moss covered stone, making the house look like a giant mosscreep. Even for the standard of mosskin, this was unkempt, even more so than usual for the friend who resided inside. Knocking on the side of the wall, though it was less of a knock and more of a rustle of leaves, she entered.

“Nymph, are you here?” She chirped, looking around the single room. The floor was littered with loose paper, whatever may have been written on the sheets had been smudged by moisture. A small mosskin moved in the corner of the room, drawing Sythia’s attention towards her.

“What do you want?” Her voice was flat, the mosskin had rolls of paper in her arms and was rustling through a makeshift leaf bag quite frantically.

“Such a warm welcome.” Sythia cooed sarcastically, making her way to the smaller bug. “Lose something?”

The leaf adorned antenna of the small bug twitched, annoyed “I can’t find my quill, I wanted to check on the sick mosskin today.”

Making herself comfortable on a small stone chair, she hummed “No need is there? Not like you’re the resident doctor or anything.” 

“Yes, but it’s important to keep these things under control.” Nymph huffed, pulling out a quill from the bag, giving a satisfied smile as she laid her eyes on it.

“Not much you can do to control that infection can you? I’m surprised it’s even spread to the mosskin if I’m honest.”

Ignoring her comment, the smaller bug trotted briskly to the door of her little home. “I’m busy right now, Sythia. Don’t you have something else you could do?”

“I never have anything to do and you know it.” Leaning back she closed her eyes, crossing her legs.

“Yes, so you come here to drag me into trouble with you.” Nymph spun around, bag now slung around her shoulder, her gaze accusing.

Sythia chuckled. “Oh I never get into that much trouble. Besides, outrunning the sentries is exhilarating, don’t you think?”

“No.” 

And with that, the small mosskin was gone. Leaving Sythia alone to listen to the quiet sounds of gentle leaf rustling. 

-

Sythia spent some time alone in Nymph’s house, feeling quite comfortable to sit and think about nothing in particular. Though she had grown bored of waiting for her friend to return, and doubted she would be able to drag her to the main caverns to do whatever slightly illegal activity she could find. Nymph had argued with her that there was no such thing as a ‘slightly illegal activity’ but Sythia would have to disagree, after all she was sure that throwing moss bundles at the head of sentries and jumping barriers into private property wasn’t all that illegal. The flowers in some of the private gardens were much too pretty to observe from afar. Nymph had once asked Sythia if she wanted to join her in her rounds of the sick bugs but Sythia preferred not to be around them. They were mostly suffering the early symptoms but watching their glazed eyes and listening to their troubled mumbling made her restless. 

Pushing herself up and stretching out she left the house, once again waving to familiar mosskin who greeted her as she passed, she made her way back to the path leading to her own home. The lady beetle didn’t feel like stopping by the busier parts of Greenpath anymore, she was feeling quite serene at the moment and opted on changing the vines she used as a grip on her scythes instead. It had also been a while since she had polished the blade. 

As she descended into the deeper caverns, the paths became more overgrown, thorns lining some walls, pools of acid interrupting paths and the air more humid. It was much quieter in these caves, the silence welcoming. The caves twisted much more often here, a maze to bugs who were unfamiliar but Sythia had walked this way for a long while now and had most of it mentally mapped out. She hummed to herself as she walked down the familiar paths, her voice echoing in the quiet. It was peaceful, carefree, just how she liked it.

Until a low rumble shook the ground, pulling Sythia out of her thoughts. 

She paused, listening carefully. It was silent for a moment, then a distant roar echoed from a small side path. One Sythia knew lead to quite the large opening, a beautiful one filled with rosemary, and other fragrant plants. The path was narrow, Sythia had to duck to get through it, and she herself wasn’t a very tall bug. As far as she knew this was the only way to get into the clearing. Mosscreep were normally the only other bugs she would ever see use these paths but that cry had sounded like it came from a bug much bigger, perhaps even a beast of sorts. It piqued her interest, though she resolved to have a nice calm day, she was curious to see what had made that noise. Sythia moved quickly through the path and as it opened up she drew her scythes and hid at the mouth of the path, observing the situation.

A large moss covered beast was running around the clearing. It dawned on Sythia what the beast was as she saw it rumbling around. “A massive moss charger, that makes sense.” she muttered. Though the behaviour of the horde was odd. Moss chargers were small enough individually to make it through the path, and it made sense that a large group of them would naturally form a horde as they normally did. But moss chargers only attacked if absolutely necessary, and they would absolutely never rampage like this, bringing attention to themselves.

Sythia’s chest dropped as she caught a glimpse of the creatures eyes. They were glowing unnaturally. Bright burning orange. These moss chargers were all infected. 

Sythia sighed, she didn’t want to deal with hyper aggressive infected bugs today. She didn’t really have any reason to intervene. No one would come by here anyway, and the moss charger would most likely not leave. She shifted her weight, turning to leave when a glint caught her eye, drawing her attention to the far side of the cave. There was a bug in there, a very small bug wielding a similarly small glaive. Dread washed over Sythia as she saw the small bug stagger slightly as they struggled to dodge the charging beast. They took another moment to gain their footing before attempting to swing after the back end of the beast as it burrowed back into the ground. The swing looked painful, as if the glaive was the heaviest weapon in the world. The small bug staggered again as they turned around, anticipating the next attack. The ground shook once more, but instead of charging, the massive moss charger leaped into the air, making the small bug look even smaller. Sythia watched as the small bug flinched, clearly surprised at the change in attack. The attack would crush the poor creature, no doubt ending it here. How miserable, to die to a mindless beast, all alone in a place where no one would find you. 

Too miserable.

Sythia dashed forwards, she hadn't moved this fast in a while. In an instant she was beside the small bug. They turned to her in surprise, beginning to move to swing their weapon in her direction, but Sythia was much faster and she grabbed the smaller bug, dashing out from underneath the moss charger as it crashed down behind them.

She placed the small bug in a rather overgrown patch of rosemary. “Wait here and don’t move.” 

Turning to the beast she dashed to the other corner of the room, drawing its attention by buzzing her wings violently. Ignoring their previous target, the massive moss charger let out another loud roar, charging heavily towards her. Swiftly, she shifted to one side of the beast, violently stabbing the mass of moss with both her scythes, digging them as deep as she could. As they charged past her, her scythes were dragged through the moss, catching something as she felt the increased force on her scythes and the sound of a breaking shell. The moss charger retreated back into the ground, leaving in their wake the body of the charger she hit, all curled up and bleeding foul smelling orange blood. Sythia jumped back, resisting the instinct to fly into the air. She looked towards where she had left the small bug. They had slumped back into the rosemary and had dropped their glaive, head down, eyes seemingly closed. Her attention was drawn back to the moss charger as they charged towards her. They had come up closer this time, giving her no time to dodge, so she dug her claws into the ground and braced herself, allowing power to well up in her blades. As the beast came closer, she slashed forward with both blades. The power of the slash knocked the moss charger back significantly, blowing away it’s mossy coverage, the sound of metal slicing through air echoing in the cavern. The individual moss chargers fell out, all scuttling away the moment they gained their footing. Even in their infected state, a moss charger without it’s cover would flee. No doubt they would want to group back up into a massive beast once more and that would take quite a while to coordinate. Sythia relaxed, flicking her scythes towards the ground, attempting to clear the blood form the moss charger she had struck before returning them to her back.

Turning back to the bug she had helped, she noticed they were not moving. Had they died while she fought? Her chest tightened as she approached the small bug. Her nerves calmed as they lifted their head, though it lolled down heavily as if they were incredibly tired. “You okay?”

The small bug didn’t reply, but stared intently.

“Too weak to talk? Want to come back to my home to rest?” She questioned, bending down to wave a claw in front of their face.

Once more they didn’t respond but they lifted up a hand to grab the claw Sythia was waving. She paused, but the other bug didn’t move to do anything else. Slowly she moved back, straightening up. As she drew her claw away, the small bug started briefly after it before dropping their head again.

Sythia frowned, slight sadness welling up within her. This bug had almost died but they seemed so calm. Or perhaps calm was the wrong word, but they certainly weren’t acting like a bug who had almost been flattened by a large mossy beast. She sat down in front of them, drawing her attention to the glaive they had left on the floor by their feet. It’s body was a sturdy, polished pole of wood, vine binding loose on the opposite end where the chipped head of a rather shiny looking blade was hanging off where it should have been bound tight. Sythia sighed, it would have been an impressive little weapon if it weren't so badly damaged. 

On closer inspection, this little bug was unlike any she had ever seen before. It's shell was a beautiful pale white, three long horns elegantly extended from their head, each to a neat point, while shorter thicker horns curved upwards from the sides of their head, one on each side. Their body was draped in what would have been a wonderfully dark blue cloak if it wasn't so tattered and worn. Two small legs poked out beneath the cloak, they were an entrancing dark black, darker than any exoskeleton she had seen on any bug. She couldn't even make out if the small thing’s body was a black exoskeleton or a living shadow. Needless to say, the creature was mysterious. Unsettling in an elegant way. Sythia quite liked the look of it. 

“Hey there small friend. You’re not thinking of just sitting here forever?”

The bug lifted their head once more, still not replying. The silence was odd, could this bug not hear? They seemed to be able to. Why weren’t they saying anything?

With a swift sudden movement, they lifted up their small arms, spreading them out like a child who wanted to be carried.

Sythia sighed, dropping her head to her knees. “First I had to save you and now you want me to carry you? I suppose I don’t have much of a choice.”

She lifted her head and stared back at them for a moment. Their eyes were hollow, completely empty but they stared unwavering at her, seemingly pleading and lonely. 

“Alright, I get it.” She stood, picking up the small bug. She lifted them, noticing that they lacked the same warmth other bugs had. They didn’t seem to have lost any blood, were they always this cold? Light, they were also very light, light enough to hold in one arm.

They leaned into her chest, snuggling close. Sythia couldn’t help but smile as they did so, putting the previous questions in her mind aside. Even though this bug was capable of wielding a weapon, they acted like a child. She wondered briefly why they were all alone in such a hidden place as she picked up the broken glaive in her other hand. In her time as a wanderer she had grown quite skilled at fixing weapons. She would fix up this small glaive as some peace of mind that the small wanderer would have something to defend themself with once they were on their way.

\- 

Motion stirred in the back of the small cavern where Sythia's makeshift bed was. It was nothing special, a particularly comfy dip in a large rock lined nicely with moss and leaves. A tattered cover of a fine material, that may or may not have been stolen from a particular stuck up traveling merchant she had once met, made a good blanket. She sat up from the corner where she had been resting in to see the little creature she had helped had jumped neatly from the bed and was making their way towards her. They halted in front of her, staring with a blank expression. 

“I see you've awoken small friend and you look much better too.” She shifted her weight to sit up straight. Grabbing the small glaive, now fixed, from her lap and handed it to the bug before her. 

They took the glaive without hesitating and looked at Sythia's handiwork. She had bound the head and body of the glaive back together with some particularly sticky sap and tightened the vine binding back up around the wood and the metal. It was a rough job but should keep the weapon intact. 

Suddenly, the small bug turned and began wildly swinging the glaive, waving it in the air, in front of themself, jabbing forward and smashing it against the cavern walls. Sythia stood. 

“Hey now, don't go breaking it, I just fixed it for you.” Her voice was laced with amusement. This bug was not as stoic as they appeared.

Turning back to Sythia, the small bug waved the glaive above their head in a less frantic manner, jumping slightly as they did so. 

“Is that a thank you?” Her wings fluttered slightly. ‘How cute’ she thought. “If so, you are very welcome.” 

Sythia made her way to a small stone pot in the ground, grabbing a wooden spoon that lay on a ledge that jutted out of the wall. She stirred the contents of the pot and steam billowed out of it, filling the small cavern with a wonderful smell. Grabbing a hollowed shell to her left, she filled it with the soup and passed it to her guest. They looked at the shell for a moment and lay their glaive on the floor to take it from her hands. They stared at the shell for a long while then back to Sythia who had settled in front of them. Moving next to Sythia, they sat beside her still holding the shell filled with food. Once more, they turned their head to the larger bug, cocking it slightly to the side. 

“Don't tell me you don't know how to eat?” Sythia took the shell from the small creature and downed all of its contents in a single go.

The small bug stared at her. 

“Can you really not eat?” She asked, genuine concern creeping into her voice. 

The small bug looked down, then back up, then shook their head. 

“You can't eat, you can't speak. What are you?” Wonder filled her voice. She had never come across such a strange little bug. They couldn't communicate like any other intelligent bug but they were indeed intelligent, they understood every word she said and moved with purpose. 

They averted their gaze. Silence shook the cavern as an odd sorrow gripped Sythia. The expression on the small bug didn't change, she didn't think it could at this point, but they seemed to be remembering something painful. Those downcast eyes spoke the words they couldn't. For all their silence, they looked directly at her when she asked a question, as if willing an answer from those hollow eyes. Now they looked at the floor, truly not saying a word.

Suddenly the small bug stood, grabbed their glaive and briskly left the cavern. Sythia watched them go. She figured she had upset the small bug. Sythia sighed and relaxed against the wall of the cavern. She had probably seen the last of them anyway. Such is the way of a wanderer she thought, surprised at the sadness creeping up on her. 

A loud sharp noise of metal striking rock brought her out of her thoughts. She hurried outside to see the small wanderer striking a stone rather aggressively. When she emerged they turned to look at her, waving their glaive in the air once more. 

“Oh, did you want me to follow you?”

The small wanderer nodded, then turned away, walking briskly once more. Sythia followed closely behind. They maneuvered with ease over the acid pools and past the thorns, much to Sythia's surprise. They could jump much higher and further than their little legs suggested. Eventually, they ended up back at the little clearing filled with rosemary. The little wanderer briskly walked to the patch where Sythia had left them as she fought and pointed at the few crushed stems and flowers where they had been sitting previously. 

“Is this… your answer to my question? You came from the rosemary?” Sythia’s voice was alight with amusement. There were a few bugs that were said to have come from the plants, mainly the mosskin, but this little bug was no mosskin. Not a beetle or husk. Not a bug like any she had ever seen. There was no way this wanderer came from the rosemary. 

But despite this obvious lie, the little wanderer nodded eagerly. 

“Ah, I see now.” She spoke, false seriousness covering her clear delight at such a silly lie. “I suppose I should call you Rose then.” 

Silence, then nodding. Very happy nodding at that.

“Rose it is.” Sythia walked over to her newly named friend. Patting their head between their horns. 

Rose closed their eyes, seemingly pleased with the gentle pats. They leaned in, wrapping their small arms around Sythia's leg in a rather warm hug despite the lack of warmth that came from their body. Sythia was taken aback briefly before warm affection filled her chest. 

“And I suppose I won't be getting rid of you anytime soon.” She contemplated, her voice clearly portraying the affection she felt. 

Rose shook their head, hanging tightly onto the leg of their new companion.


	2. Chapter 2

Rose had settled very quickly into Sythia’s lifestyle. They had spent quite a while together since she had rescued the small bug from the massive moss charger. Even though the small bug seemed stoic at first, Sythia had come to find they were actually more of a tiny trouble maker, gladly taking part in her mischief, much to the annoyance of Nymph. The mosskin had been surprised at first when Sythia visited her with a small bug on her head, asking who’s child she had kidnapped, throwing her face into her hands in despair that her friend had finally committed a serious crime. It took the rest of the day to explain how she had come across Rose. The two of them had a debate as to whether or not Rose was actually a child or not, after all they had been all on their own when Sythia had found them. They couldn't quite come to a decision on that. Rose was unlike any other bug they had ever seen, reacting differently to almost everything that came at them. They showed no remorse in cutting down wild bugs that would attack them and ignored insults that some bugs would throw at them. Though Sythia found that they didn’t like to be left alone, that was the one thing that upset Rose. Thanks to that, Sythia found herself spending all her time with the small bug, gradually growing very attached and deciding that the constant company wasn’t all that bad, especially when the company was just as mischievous as yourself.

Sitting up in her bed, she blinked the sleep out of her eyes, stretching out her arms over her head. Lazily, she drew her gaze around the small cavern she resided in. It was silent and still apart from the trickle of fresh water that ran down one of the walls. The silence wasn’t new, but the stillness was. Rose was usually up making a fuss around something they found interesting. The small bug didn’t seem to need much sleep and would usually wait around for Sythia to wake up. Maybe they were outside? Standing, she stretched out once more. She walked to the gap in the far wall that led to the open paths and looked around the moss covered walls.

“Rose?”

No response.

They couldn’t really respond, Sythia knew that, but they would at least hit their glaive against the closest hard surface to signify where they were or come bursting out of the bushes, cloak ruffled and leaves stuck between their horns. She chuckled at the thought.

Still this was odd. Rose had never wandered far enough for her voice to not reach them. Maybe they were stuck in a hole? That seemed likely, the small bug never really watched where they were going. Taking up a brisk pace, she trotted along the leaf lined path towards the small acid pool that needed to be crossed to access the rest of the Greenpath. It bubbled with a strong smell, hissing violently. A grimm thought crossed her mind, but she shook it away. Rose would never be that reckless, hopefully. It was a mystery as to where the little bug could be. Her best bet was to check the places they frequented, the mosskin village, the Lake of Unn, the main roads were an option too. Opting to fly to get around faster, she went on her way. Honestly, they were quite the handful at times.

-

Rose padded along a narrow path, feet pattering quietly in a rhythmic manner. Sythia had slept longer than she usually did. They had waited, and waited, and gotten bored so it was time for their own adventure. So far they had sliced at an interesting fern, delighting as it cut neatly. The rock that it grew out of did not slice as easily and they had worn down their glaive hitting it for a while. It didn’t give way. Becoming bored of that too, they continued on their way. It was the first time they had gone on an adventure on their own since the ascension from that place. They had been reckless at that time and the world had been new. They were fine on their own now and there had been small paths Sythia had missed they wanted to crawl into and poke around.

Walking around a corner, Rose came upon a wall. It wasn’t a dead end, looking up they could see where the path continued. There was no way up though. Usually faced with an obstacle like this, Sythia would have scooped them up and flown them over. They could make it without her though. They weren’t a stranger to climbing and the wall wasn’t all that steep. Hoisting their glaive onto their back they gripped onto a thick low growing tendril, pulling themselves up. The plant bent slightly under their weight but held sturdy. Ungracefully, they scrambled up the wall, almost falling as they lost their grip after grabbing a vine that was covered in small spikes. Crawling over the edge of the ledge, they sat up, scanning the new surroundings. There was another wall a few steps ahead of them, this time rising all the way up to the ceiling. The small bug stood, walking over to the wall. Like many of the other walls in Greenpath, it was covered in moss and leaves. Tilting their head, they looked over each leaf and vine. Nothing special seemed to be growing. Turning around to head back, Rose noticed a small crevice to their left. At first sight it only looked as if some of the rock had worn away but on closer inspection, it led further back into the wall. Something interesting to explore.

Briskly pacing over to the crevice, they leaned down to inspect it. It was half covered with ferns and seemed very dark inside but that wouldn’t deter the small bug. It would be a narrow fit with their horns poking out the side of their head but that wasn’t anything some side stepping wouldn’t fix. Shuffling into the hole, Rose crept along. It wasn’t long before the cave became too dark to see and they could only feel the soft mossy ground beneath their feet. The darkness was unsettling but nothing new. After a few more moments of walking, the path opened up slightly and some light trickled in from cracks in the ceiling. A few good wacks with their glaive would send the roof crumbling down and as tempting as it seemed, that would be a bad idea. The room was small, even smaller than the cave Sythia lived in. There was something wearing an over sized grey cloak cowering in the far side of the room, thought that wasn’t very far away, around the length of Rose’s glaive. Grabbing their glaive they pointed it at the shaking thing. As the sound of the blade cut through the air the other bug turned sharply.

The shell was familiar, save for a crack on the left side of their face. Familiar eyes, empty yet full, fuller than those of the shells they had awoken on in that dark hole. They were the same. The same and alive. Lowering their glaive, they walked towards the other bug. As Rose approached, they attempted to scurry further back into the wall, shaking harder. They didn’t have a weapon. It was purely by chance Rose had come across a glaive their size at that time, it wasn’t surprising. Stopping in front of them, Rose held out their free hand. The smaller bug looked at their out held hand. They stopped shaking and slowly raised their own, hesitating before taking it. As they did so, Rose lifted them up.

-

“You checked the stag station too? You know how much Rose loves those benches.” Nymph hummed, passing the lady beetle a cup of water.

“Every bench has been thoroughly checked.” She responded, waving a hand in thanks. “Where else could they be?”

The search for Rose had been unsuccessful. She had spent most of the day looking for the little menace and she had to admit, she was starting to get a little worried. The small bug seemed very capable of taking care of themself but she hadn’t been apart from them since she had first found them and it was a little concerning. It would have been nice if they had left a note. Could they even write? Thinking about that, she wasn’t even sure if she had any paper or stone tablets to write on, or a quill for that matter. She sighed into her cup.

“Then I suppose you can only wait. Rose is normally stuck to your side, they’ll be back eventually.”

“I hope you’re right.” She leaned back in the chair she was sitting on.

As if Nymph has foresight, two small bugs trotted into Nymph’s little house, hand in hand. Sythia almost fell out of her chair as she recognized the five horned bug, hurrying over to them. The smaller bug that was with them, cowered behind them slightly but she took no notice of them. Her initial instinct was to pull Rose into a hug but she couldn’t help herself as she bunched her claws into a fist and firmly pressed it down on the top of Rose’s head with enough force to push their head down slightly.

“And where have you been you little troublemaker?” She found her voice choking up with affection as an unexpected wave of relief washed over her.

Rose shook her off, waving their small hands in the air in defiance. They stood up tall looking straight at her.

“It would do me some good if you let me know when you're about to wander off for half the day. I was worried y’know.” She crouched down as she said this, patting the small bug’s head.

Rose loosened up at this, lowering their head slightly. An apology.

“Alright, it’s okay.” She smiled, her gaze fell on the smaller bug that was still hiding behind Rose. “Who’s this?”

Rose moved out of the way slightly. The smaller bug looked at Rose panicked, but the larger of the small bugs nodded and they timidly turned to Sythia. ‘This bug is like Rose’ was her first thought. Small with a pale shell. Two short thick horns curved up and around towards their head and four smaller horns grew out the side of their head, two on each side. Unlike Rose, they had a bold crack in the left side of their shell, running right through their left eye. If this bug really was the same as Rose, that was quite the crack. Sythia had watched Rose fall head first onto a very solid looking rock from quite high up. It was quite alarming but they had not taken a moment before they stood back up and tried to fight the rock they had fallen on. She had thoroughly checked them after but there wasn’t even a chip in their shell. Maybe Rose just had a very sturdy shell.

“I don’t suppose you can tell me where you came from?” She rested her head in her hand as she said this, smirking.

The little bug didn’t reply, looking panicked around the room.

“Sythia, you’re scaring them.” Nymph shoved her out of the way and she fell dramatically to the floor.

“Please, you’re the scarier one among the two of us.”

The mosskin huffed and turned to the new smallest bug in the room. “Do you need somewhere to rest? It’s peaceful here.”

The bug shook their head and shuffled closer to Rose, gripping their cloak.

Still lying on the floor Sythia chuckled. “They only like Rose.”

“They’re just afraid. I’m sure they’ll settle soon enough.”

Sythia though for a moment. They certainly did seem shaken, very different from the fearless Rose. She knew a serene place they would probably relax in. “Right then,” she sat up. “let’s go somewhere else.”

-

The Lake of Unn was certainly one of the most serene places she knew. The air was filled with the sharp smell of acid, but the light from above hit the lakes surface in a way that illuminated the whole cavern a soothing pale green. She appreciated the excitement of sparring and teasing wild bugs but resting here while watching aluba drift over head was nice too. As they walked into the large cavern, the new bug immediately relaxed as they looking around, though they still clung tightly to Rose’s cloak. As they approached the bank of the lake, they paused. Nymph briefly sighed as she cast a side glance to the tall structure that sat near the edge of the lake.

“They seem to like it.” Sythia whispered to Nymph as she watched the small bug sit on the ground and watch the aluba as they drifted slowly by. They opened up their arms as they flew past. Rose mimicked the movement.

“What are they doing?” Nymph questioned.

“Who knows. It’s quite cute though.”

-

They remained at the lake for the rest of the day. The smaller bug had just sat there watching the aluba the whole time but Rose had gotten bored of that quickly. They had approached Sythia from where she had chosen to lie in the plants, away from the metal path that led up to the lake. Nymph had left earlier, not wanting to waste her day doing nothing. Rose waved their glaive above their head, signalling they wanted to fight. The lady beetle had taken the offer and enjoyed the clash of blades. Rose seemed to have an inherent nature for combat but they lacked precision and were often too reckless. If Sythia could get them to listen for long enough she could probably teach them how to properly fight. After their match, and a while spent trying to get Rose to stop swinging their glaive at her, she returned to the bank of the lake where the small bug was still waiting, watching the gentle aluba.

“You feel better yet?” Sythia called out.

The bug turned their head at her call but didn’t move. They didn’t flinch away as Sythia approached either.

“I’ll take that as a yes.” She smiled patting the head of the small bug.

They winced slightly before relaxing.

Sythia nodded, thinking for a moment. “Aluba.”

The smaller bug tilted their head.

“You don’t have a name do you? Since you like them so much, how does Aluba sound?”

Rose nodded from where they were standing beside Sythia.

“I’m not asking you.” She huffed and Rose placed their hands on their hips in response.

The lady beetle turned back to the small bug and they nodded, standing up and reaching out their arm for Sythia to take their hand. Smirking, she opted to pick up the smaller bug instead. Aluba seemed shocked for a moment before they settled again. Sythia sighed exhausted, though there was a slight smile on her face. At least this bug didn’t seem nearly half the handful Rose was.

-

After a while of taking care of Aluba, Sythia had found the smaller bug was much more afraid of everything then she had initially anticipated, cowering away from anything that attacked them. They were soft and timid and Sythia found it difficult to properly take care of them. Rose was eager to fight anything that moved, while the slight indication of conflict left the other bug hiding. Sythia couldn’t take them along with her when she went to cause chaos so Nymph had offered to take care of them saying ‘They’re actually quite lovely to be around. I’m glad someone isn’t influenced by your recklessness.’ while waving a quill in the direction of Rose who was busy sizing up a rock. Nymph had taken Aluba with her to visit the infected bugs and she had told Sythia that bugs who had only recently been affected seemed to regain themselves when Aluba had listened to them.

Sythia had to say that she enjoyed having the small stoic bugs around, though after a while, both Rose and Aluba would disappear. At first it was only for a short amount of time, then gradually longer and longer. There would always be some indication that they would only be gone for a while. A small stone tablet that read ‘will be back’. Sythia was surprised to find that they could actually write and when she told Nymph, the mosskin had said that Aluba often watch her taking notes so must have picked it up then. It worried her at first that they would go off alone, but she knew Rose was more than capable of taking care of both of them and they would always come back after some time, though sometimes Rose would be slightly battered, though that wasn’t very alarming. The small bug always found something to fight.

It had been a while since she had taken in the two bugs. They had become irreplaceable but something always sat oddly in her stomach. They were mysterious, they didn’t eat, speak and didn’t really need to sleep, almost as if they weren’t really alive at all. It concerned Sythia, but she never asked. She didn’t even know if they knew. If there was a way to find out more about the small bugs then she would do anything to do so.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hands you another child.
> 
> I drew a thing for this chapter but I have no idea how insert images here so link time!  
https://twitter.com/KandySongbird/status/1197252722560507905


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's actual story time.

The bubbling of the acid lake ahead of the lady beetle drew her attention. Sythia watched as the bubbles appeared and popped with hisses and sizzles, spraying the deadly liquid up at her, though the platform she was sitting on was too high for the spray to reach. She had found herself coming to the Lake of Unn more often. Rose and Aluba had begun to disappear more frequently and after getting so used to causing mischief with Rose by her side. Teasing nobles passing through Greenpath had become quite boring without the little bug there, silently agreeing with the annoying little comments Sythia would make. She thought to the time they had come across a pair of stuck up upper class bugs who had gotten themselves lost and had followed them around making ominous sounds from the shadows, attempting to hold back her laughter as they scrambled around terrified. Nymph had later told her she was being childish but Sythia just shrugged, she had helped them find their way once they really started to lose it, though they didn't seem very grateful. Not even offering a thank you. In her opinion they deserved it. Rose seemed to enjoy it too, they walked back home with a jump in their step that day. 

Approaching footsteps sounded behind her, she turned around, antenna perking as she saw Nymph. The small mosskin was out of breath, and had to pause for a moment to catch it again. Sythia stood at this. Nymph never hurried anywhere. For her to have run here must mean something was very wrong. 

“What's wrong? Did something happen?” Panic rose in her chest. 

“Sythia-” She huffed, “you- we need your help!’ She panted, her eyes were troubled, wide with alarm. 

“Tell me where I need to go, I can get there faster without you.” Sythia knew it was harsh, but Nymph wasn't exactly the most athletic bug. Sythia’s speed was one of her strongest points, normally having her sparring opponents complain how she was moving way too fast for them to retaliate. 

“The mosskin village, where I live. One of the infected bugs have become aggressive.” Nymph looked up, her eyes welled with tears. 

Sythia felt her blood run cold. Most bugs who reached that point in infection were passed saving. They lashed out indiscriminately. Some bugs attempted to lock away the infected bugs, hoping they would somehow be cured but others saw it as hopeless. Their minds were gone and they were suffering, it would be kinder to cut them down. To put their minds at ease. She hated this. The mosskin were her friends. She never wanted to hurt them, but Nymph was asking for her help and Nymph only asked for her help when she needed some physical aid. “What do you want me to do?” She tried to sound confident but her voice wavered. 

“We tried to save them. But their attacking their own kin. You can stop them right?” The mosskin sounded desperate, uncharacteristically small. 

“I'll do what I can.” 

-

When Sythia arrived at the village, there were no mosskin to be seen. They were normally always out, tending to plants or enjoying each others company but the doors to their homes were shut tight. Sythia paused for a moment, listening for any sound. 

Footsteps. 

She moved closer to the small houses, peering around the corner. A moss knight was pacing, nail bared, ready to strike. Their eyes were glowing orange and they were muttering to themself. Sythia listened closely, it was hard to make out, something about Unn. She knew the infection would ruin the minds of bugs. The mosskin had been worried by the disappearance of Unn for some time. When she arrived in Greenpath the higher being had already gone, the infection seemed to have brought out the moss knights desire to find her. 

Sythia leaned forward, lost in thought, she chipped some stone off the house she was leaning against. As it clattered against the floor, the moss knight turned their attention to her, immediately becoming hostile, running over to her drawing back their nail. Startled, Sythia leapt over them, fluttering in the air. The moss knight slashed up towards her, only slicing empty air. A call from a house caught her attention. 

“Sythia! You have to stop them.” She turned to see a mosskin she didn't remember the name of. She wasn't very good with names but that didn't matter now. 

Her attention was drawn back as the moss knight spat a ball of venom at her. She swatted it away with a single movement, and moved further back, trying to stay out of reach. Her heart dropped as the mossy bug moved towards her, orange eyes gleaming. “What do you want me to do? They won't stop unless I seriously hurt them.” 

Sythia didn't turn to look at the mosskin but she heard them grumble in distress. There wasn't much she could do without hurting this bug and she didn't want to do that. Her mind was running blank. 

The sound of small footsteps caught her attention. Was it Nymph? Had the mosskin run all the way back already? She shifted her position, flying higher to see who was running up behind the moss knight. 

She froze. 

Rose was fast approaching, eyes dark, glaive in hand. Rose never showed mercy, especially not to infected bugs. Sythia wanted to call out. To tell them to stop. As aggressive as Rose was, they would stop if Sythia asked. But her voice wouldn't come out, it was stuck in her throat. A familiar feeling of dread swamped her, tightening her chest making it almost impossible to breathe. 

The moss knight, focused on her, didn't even have the chance to retaliate and Rose slashed their glaive into their back. The swing was powerful, slicing open the shell of the knight, spraying infected blood across Rose's pale face. The infected mosskin stumbled to turn around and hold their shield up in defense but Rose had become faster since Sythia began teaching the small bug how to efficiently fight and wasted not a moment in delivering another blow, sending the moss knight tumbling back. Their limbs curled up to their chest, and the orange glow died from their eyes. 

Sythia couldn't help but stare. Rose's ruthlessness was scary sometimes. They had sparred with the moss knights before but were so easily able to cut one down. The small bug looked up at her. Seemingly waiting for her to come down. She took a deep breath before descending, Rose running up to her as she landed. They patted her leg, something Sythia recognised as ‘are you okay?’. Had the small bug been trying to protect her? 

“I'm okay Rose. Thank you.” Though her words were quiet, holding none of her usual pep. 

The other mosskin were beginning to emerge from their homes, she spotted Aluba running over from a house they were most likely hiding behind, making their way straight to Sythia and clinging onto her leg as they stared at the body of the moss knight. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Nymph. Her friend was wide eyed as she saw the body and quickly hurried over to Sythia. 

Sythia looked down. She had been asked to help and she had ended up killing this bug instead. It wasn't their fault they lashed out. The infection could turn even the most kind minds violent. “I'm sorry.” she muttered. 

Nymph didn't reply for a second. “It's fine. I thought this might happen. There's no way to help them once this happens.”

“Is that why you called me?” The lady beetle snapped. “To kill this bug?” 

The mosskin flinched at the change in her tone. “I'm sorry. I know you don't like seeing infected bugs. I just - I couldn't ask the other knights to do it.”

Sythia couldn't stay mad. A genuine apology from Nymph were few and far between. She knew that she was right. There's nothing you can do to save an inflected bug. 

-

Sythia had stayed in her small cavern home for a while after, thinking over what had happened. The mosskin had said they were not mad at her, after all it hadn't even been her who had killed the bug. But she could have stopped Rose, yet she didn't. She turned her gaze to the smaller bug, they were fiddling with their glaive. The weapon looked run down and blunt, clearly reaching its limit after the previous encounter. 

She tried striking up a conversation to distract herself, not that Rose could keep up the other half. “It'd be nice to get that fixed up but I bet any nailsmith would ask us to provide the materials.”

Rose looked up. 

“I have the geo to pay for repairs but not the materials. Ore is very expensive to buy y’know.”

With that Rose reached into their cloak and pulled out a shiny white ore. It glowed dimly, and shone spectacularly. 

Sythia nearly fell off of her bed. “Is that pale ore? Where did you get that?” 

Rose shrugged and returned the ore to wherever they were keeping it. 

Sythia sighed. She supposed Rose had gotten it on one of their adventures with Aluba. Though she didn't want to know how. She had to admit, she would steal a cheap bowl or two but something as valuable as pale ore was something she'd rather buy properly. That is if she ever had enough to buy something so precious. Sythia guess it didn't really matter where Rose got it from. They had it now and a sorry looking weapon that needed it. Plus, a bug that was selling pale ore didn't really need the extra geo. They weren't missing anything. That was assuming Rose stole it. 

“Well then, shall we go to the city?”

-

Aluba had opted to stay behind, shaking their head when Sythia has asked it they wanted to join. Nymph had promised to keep an eye on the smaller bug, though Sythia doubted Aluba would run off without Rose. She thanked her mossy friend and left for the City of Tears. 

Sythia was never one for the bustle of the city. Husks pushing through crowds, swindlers trying to con the gullible out of large sums of geo, overly long lines at stag stations and husk sentries absolutely everywhere. Not that she was doing anything wrong. At least not for now. Though she had to admit, she stood out among the other bugs. Her shell was red and black spotted, standing out boldly against the blue of native Hallownest husks, long attentive antenna that looked more like horns than antenna and two perfectly sharp, lethally curved throwing scythes tucked away behind her shell beneath her wings. Though not unusual to see one carrying a weapon along the city sidewalks, especially nowadays, the typical blade was a nail crafted from pale ore or some other valuable grey metal. Sythia carried no nail of sorts, a weapon like hers was seen most commonly at the colosseum and the bugs who participated in those matches were known for aggression and less than legal ways. Glares of armored sentries did not deter her. She heard from a couple of husks she had struck up conversation with in the busier parts of Greenpath that a skilled nailsmith lived within the great city. Rose was trotting along beside her, glaive resting on their back, eyes facing forward showing nothing in particular in ways of emotion. Small in stature and seemingly stoic in nature with those beautiful pale horns and gorgeous, even in its tattered state, cloak. Clearly a bug of Hallownest but of origins Sythia could not name or even begin to guess.

The two strolled with purpose as they traveled through the city. Moving into the parts of the city that were less busy was a relief. While the lush foliage and fragrant smell of Greenpath was always home, something about the beautifully intricate architecture and rhythmic falling of the rain struck them as equally wonderful, if only in a somber tone. Sythia couldn't ignore the sad pang of nostalgia she felt hearing rain and seeing buildings bathed in the cool blues as light reflected off the water. Without the noise and busyness, the City of Tears was a stunning sight to behold.

Across a walkway was a little hut. Sythia could make out nails that had been stabbed into the ground nearby hinting that this little hut belonged to the bug they were searching for. Picking up Rose, she took off, flying towards the little house. Replacing her friend on the ground once she arrived, she knocked twice against the wall of the hut, entering without hearing any reply. The bug that greeted her was a beetle of sorts. If she had to guess, one related to the stags in some way, despite a clear difference in basic anatomy. A mess of hair grew around his mouth and a single long horn protruding from his head, shell a deep sad grey. He was working away at a long nail, not noticing her entry. 

“Greetings, you are the nailsmith if I'm not mistaken.” Sythia spoke, voice loud and clear. 

The bug looked up from his work, eyeing her for a moment before turning back. “Yes, if you need a nail reforged then you'll have to pay with geo.” 

Sythia nodded deeply in one of her mocking nods, though the Nailsmith did not seem to notice. “Not a nail, my friends glaive is in quite a sad state. I heard you were an excellent nailsmith and hoped you could fix it up. Of course I have the geo and materials to pay.”

A hefty sigh came from the grey bug as he faced the two. With a swift movement, Rose presented their glaive, tattered and weary and clearly falling apart. 

“A sad state indeed.” The Nailsmith mumbled, grabbing the weapon from the smaller bug and carefully looking over it. “I can fix it, though I'd need pale ore and geo to do so.”

“Ah yes, I thought that might be the case.” Sythia perked, pulling out a small sac, heavy with geo. As Rose saw this, they too held out a pale lump of metal that shone so delicately against the black of their shell. “I'm not quite sure how much is in here. Though I'm sure it's enough to pay for repairs.” 

The Nailsmith took both items from them, placing the pale ore against his anvil. He opened the sac of geo and gave a small nod to the lady beetle. “I'll fix this little glaive for you, though it may take a while. Feel free to return later.” and with that, he had turned to his anvil and began closer inspecting the little weapon. 

“Thank you.” Sythia chirped. “Now then Rose, let's see if there's anything remotely interesting within these city walls.”

Rose bobbed in agreement, for lack of glaive to wave in the air. 

-

After wandering around the city for some time, Sythia and Rose had situated themselves on a rather comfortable bench near the houses and halls that belonged to the stingy upper class bugs. It was shielded from the rain by an elegant overhang from a nearby building and looked out into a large courtyard, edged with elaborate lamp posts, surrounded by little streets that made their way back to the main roads of the city. They hadn't been able to find much to do in the city, no fool eaters to mock or friendly mosskin to spar with. There was no husk willing to stop for a brief conversation and Sythia found herself bored while waiting for Rose’s glaive to be fixed. Face rested in hand, she stated out at the rain, watching listlessly at its continuous falling. Her mind began to drift back to the moss knight they had killed, and Sythia shook her head, trying to think of anything else. 

Rose had seemed to notice and has ceased leaning against her side to run into the courtyard. The little bug began running around wildly in the rain, twirling and jumping in what vaguely looked like a dance. Sythia had brought the little bug to listen to the music of travelling bards that passed through Dirtmouth and had fun dancing with them to upbeat tunes. Sythia smiled fondly at the memory and admired her companion for finding a tune to dance to in the patter of rain on stone, metal and glass. Watching the small bug dance happily in the rain eased the thoughts in Sythia's mind as she felt fondness grow in her chest for her small friend. 

All too soon, a small party of bugs entered the clearing. At this, Rose immediately ceased their frolicking and turned to look at them with their deep stoic stare. Sythia felt her posture rise at the sight of the small party. They were not husks noisily chatting or the pesky nobles that lived nearby. They had an overpowering air of importance that forced Sythia to her feet and had her slightly widen her stance as if she may be attacked. Two bugs stood at the front of the group, they looked identical, dressed in pale white armour, clean and shining. They both held scythe like weapons in their four hands, though unlike her own, they had a handle to hold at the base. Another, much larger bug stood at the back. Sythia swore she recognised the build of this bug. They were all round and sturdy, clad in armour equally as pale as the guards in front with a massive, heavy looking mace held tightly to their chest. Their helmet brandished four eye holes and had four curved horns coming from it. 

The final bug stood proudly in the middle. The bug that radiated that strong air of importance. This bug wore no armour and was the smallest of the four, maybe only slightly taller than Sythia herself. They were dressed regally in glowing white cloaks that draped down majestically onto the floor beneath. Their face was wonderfully pale, paler than Rose and Aluba who she thought was stunning in their own right, and their horns extended so perfectly from the top of their head as if they were forming a tall, sturdy crown. This bug, even Sythia could recognise. The pale monarch of Hallownest, beloved dearly by all bugs who resided in its walls.

The Pale King. 

Sythia had only seen this bug once before. While she was growing up within the city, the King had made a brief appearance. She remembered seeing him from behind a crowd and being in awe. She used to blindly love the King as most other bugs did but she had left that part of her behind when she had left the city. She had spent a lot of time with the mosskin since then, and they rejected his rule, staying loyal to Unn. Sythia had never really thought about the King since she had started living in Greenpath 

Normally a face to face encounter with a bug dressed in fancy clothes would be the optimal time for her to use some harsh, condescending words but the need for sassy remarks and teasing blows had escaped her entirely. An odd sense of respect had found its way to her as she looked at the Pale King. Sythia couldn't draw her eyes away from him. Though the bug himself seemed to pay no mind to her. Instead, he was staring straight at Rose, who themselves seemed frozen in place, staring back.

Sythia pulled her glance away from the King and towards her small friend. Instantly awe faded to worry as she saw their stance. Hunched down, arms apart, if they had their glaive on them, it would be promptly positioned in their small hands. Instead of the light fun upward gaze Rose would have when the two sparred, their head was tilted down somewhat, as if sizing up a dangerous opponent. For a moment there was only the sound of rain. Then Sythia willed herself to move, walking up in her best calm walk towards Rose. The small bug jumped slightly as she approached, turning their head towards her. Immediately, they skittered to meet her halfway, grabbing onto her leg and hiding behind it, peeking out at the King who was carefully observing. 

In any other situation Sythia would break a harsh joke, with the addition of a light threat at the opponent, as anything that made the fearless Rose spooked was clearly an opponent. But this was no ordinary opponent. This was the Pale King. Deep in her shell, awe still danced within her, but the alarm of her friend was more important, King or not, no harm would come to them. Though she did not reach for her scythes. Only waited. 

After a while, the large knight bent down and muttered something to the King, seemingly bringing the pale bug from his thoughts. His gaze hardened as he looked at Sythia and Rose. 

“You, young bug, where did you come across that companion of yours?” His voice rang clear as a bell, but carried with it a hint of softness. It was smooth and enchanting and made Sythia tense up with anticipation. 

Her usually clear, confident voice came out slightly wavered. “In the deeper caverns of Greenpath. They were weak and injured so I helped them recover.”  
She saved her normal playful banter and spoke clean truths. It was almost like she could speak in no other way. 

The Pale King narrowed his eyes, clearly thinking. “Is that the truth?” He spoke calmly, though not in a way of suspicion but one of light curiosity. 

“It is.” She tensed as Rose tightened their grip on her leg. 

“I see.” He nodded. Sythia swore she saw a slight darkness cross his gaze. “What are they like?” 

Confusion swarmed in her mind. No bug had ever shown much interest in them personally apart from Nymph. No other mosskin had paid a question to the origins of her friendship with Rose. They just accepted the fact that they had accompanied her one day when she paid them a visit. Why of all bugs was the King so curious? “Like any other bug. Though they don't speak and appear rather stoic, they are kind at their core, if not somewhat reckless and rowdy.”

Once again the King thought for a time, then his eyes resolved and his gaze drew firmly onto Rose. “Vessel,” his voice had hardened and it sparked fear in Sythia. “how did you find your way to Greenpath?”

Rose moved out from behind Sythia slightly, shaking their head firmly at the question. 

“You would not say. Perhaps more have managed to find their way out too.”

Sythia’s stomach dropped. More? Did he mean Aluba? Where there more of these small wordless bugs then just Rose and Aluba? 

“My King,” the large knight spoke, loud enough for Sythia to hear. “what do you want to do?” 

There was no hesitation. “Bring the vessel back and any others that have escaped.”

At this Rose tugged heavily on Sythia's leg, looking up at her, eyes stoic as ever, but a restless nervousness swarmed underneath them in the form of a tightening grip on her leg. She knew she could not let the King take Rose when they seemed so uncharacteristically afraid. But she also knew raising her blades against the King was a death sentence. There were three knights with him, no doubt skilled with their weapons, and though Sythia had no worries in regards to her own skill, fighting three of the King’s knights wasn’t something she would be foolish enough to even think about.

“Wait.” She forced herself to sound confident. “You can't take Rose. They're like my family, I won't let them go easily.” She paused, hoping this wouldn't leave her sleeping in the Resting Grounds. “Not even at the demand of the King.” 

“Is that a threat?” The large knight growled, hoisting up his mace. 

The Pale King extended his arm, halting the knight. “Don't be hasty Hegemol.” He turned to Sythia, eyes calm and thoughtful. “That vessel is not related to you by blood yet you call them family. Are you willing to lay down your life for one who has no real familial bond to you?” 

“Blood means nothing.” Sythia felt her voice grow dark as memories she had been trying to forget surfaced. Ones that the moss knight had brought back to her mind recently. “Rose is my family, one I intend to keep close. I would die before I let any harm come to them.”

The Pale King's eyes widened momentarily with interest. “And what a waste it would be to strike down a bug so willing to protect their family, don't you think Hegemol?”

At this the larger bug relaxed, lowering his mace but shooting sharp stares at the lady beetle. 

The Pale King walked closer to Sythia and Rose, signaling for his knights to remain where they stood. He stopped a few paces beside them. “You are quite courageous to stand up so boldly against me. Though foolish, I admire your willingness to protect your vessel.” He glanced down to Rose who had loosened up and was now staring back with those wide blank eyes. 

”The city backstreet is hardly a place for discussion.” He signaled to one of the front knights who marched up beside him quite dramatically. From their white armour, the King took a white seal, shaped much like the Hallownest seals Sythia had seen the city sentries wearing but it shimmered pure white. “Take this and come to the White Palace at a later date. I would greatly like to talk more with you.”

Though Sythia could not begin to guess what the Pale King would want to speak about with a rough looking bug like herself, she found herself nodding, gingerly taking the seal from the King, tensing as she felt an odd cool warmth radiating from him. 

With a slight nod of the head as a farewell, the party of pale bugs left the clearing, leaving Sythia bewildered in the rain. Rose reached up to pat her and she lowered her hand so they could take a look at the seal. The ‘vessel’ as the King had put it, though Sythia had no clue what a vessel was meant to be, brought the seal to their face and stared deeply at it. Eventually they brought it closer to their face, rubbing its shell against it affectionately. Sythia smiled warmly. 

“You seem to like that. Take care of it for me, won't you.”

Rose nodded, placing the seal within their cloak. 

“Now then, let's go get that glaive of yours.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Things are happening and the adrenaline is kicking in.  
Mostly in me.
> 
> Everything after this point is a whole heck ton of self indulgence and fear.  
You have been warned my friends.


	4. Chapter 4

Sythia had told Nymph what had happened in the city on that day. The mosskin was less than impressed. Sythia knew that mosskin didn't exactly like the Pale King, but she herself had to admit his presence was overwhelming. At her core she was a citizen of Hallownest, not a bug of the mosskin tribe. The Pale King was her monarch, as much as she liked to believe she lived a lawless life. She did have some respect for the bug, though only some. Nymph suggested that she take Aluba with her to the meeting. Sythia had to agree, it would be messy if the King found out she was hiding another ‘vessel’ from him. 

After her conversation with Nymph, both Rose and Aluba having disappeared again, she took to the crossroads, on a self given mission to find out more about the King and the state of the kingdom. Honestly she had been out of the loop. Living her life as ignorantly as she could, wanting to hear as little news as possible on the advances of the infection. But she wanted to know more now. She couldn't keep living in the dark, especially since things seemed to be getting a little hectic in her life. She had found that experements using soul to cure the infection had been stopped, and the Soul Sanctum in the city had been shut down completely due to the lead scholars defiance. The King had apparently made a promise that he had a definite way of stopping the infection but it would take some time. 

One bug had told her that the King had had a daughter with the Queen of Deepnest as part of this plan. This was one of the things Sythia knew of. It had apparently happened a while ago but most bugs had only recently found out. The Princess was already grown when the common bugs were told. The news had even reached the mosskin, they talked about it for a while but didn't seem terribly interested. Many of the upper class bugs were thrown into quite the frenzy when they heard about her. For the King to have a child with anyone other than his own Queen was never a thing they could have thought of. It was amusing to her to watch them panic. Though with a few words of ‘gifts’ and ‘deals’ their worries were put to rest. Quite the anticlimactic end if you asked her. She had never cast a thought to that Princess since. Though thinking of it now, a Princess of Deepnest would make for quite an interesting character. 

-

Sythia leaned back against the little cavern walls she called her home, Rose and Aluba sharing a silent conversation close by. The lady beetle held the pale seal in her hand as she admired the handiwork of whoever had crafted it. It was indeed a seal fit for a knight that closely served the King, all white and silver, shimmering boldly despite the lack of light. It had been many nights since her encounter with the pale monarch in the city backstreets. Her mind had been clouded with questions ever since. Why had the Pale King been in the city backstreets in the first place? What was so intriguing about her that warranted an invitation to the White Palace? Why had he taken such a deep interest in Rose? No amount of pondering could make the answers any clearer. She sighed returning the seal to Rose who was waiting patiently beside her.

Any normal bug would have rejoiced at an invitation to visit the White Palace, an invitation that had come directly from the King no less, but Sythia was not any normal bug. She abhorred stuffy environments and formalities, something that would most definitely be a must in the presence of the Pale King so she had put off visiting and had been hiding away in the furthest reaches of Greenpath.

A call brought her from her thoughts. Lifting her white head, she glanced at the entrance of her makeshift home. Standing rather disheveled, was a small mosskin, mossy fur singed in places, clearly due to a close encounter with some acid. 

“I thought you might be here.” He gasped, out of breath. 

Sythia grabbed a small stone cup and filled it with water from a small trickle that ran down one of the walls of the cavern. She offered it to the mosskin and he took it gratefully, drinking it in large thirsty gulps. 

“How unusual for the mosskin to visit me in my home.” The lady beetle hummed, taking the cup back from her guest. Rose and Aluba had run up to greet their visitor, standing close beside Sythia.

“Ah yes, you are hard to find when you don't want to be.” The mosskin laughed nervously. “There's a bug looking for you, she was quite stern that we find you quickly.” His eyes glazed over with slight fear. 

Sythia’s antenna twitched, slight dread washing over her. “Who would be looking for me?” She hadn't stolen anything in a while, or done anything that warranted anger from another recently. Did some old bug have a quarrel with her for something she did in the past? 

“That's the thing.” The mosskin nervously clasped his hands together. “It was Hallownest's Princess.”

-

With Rose at her side and Aluba riding on her head, Sythia swiftly traveled through the lush green of her home, taking well known shortcuts and ignoring any wild bugs that she would have humored otherwise. Her heart was thumping. The princess of Hallownest? She already knew what this would entail. 

She slowed her pace as she reached the clearing the mosskin spoke of. Close to the crossroads, a rather serene place among the twisting roads and crawling feet that the rest of Greenpath offered. A single bench sat on a raised platform, bathed in light that found its way through cracks in the ceiling, highlighting the pollen that danced lazily in the air. Maskflies were perched on ledges that surrounded the clearing, chirping among themselves as they glanced down at the figure seated on the bench. 

Sythia found her breath caught in her chest as she walked closer to the figure. The bug was dressed in a frilly burgundy cloak that flowed down elegantly; it was well worn but also clean and well kept, no doubt the work of skilled weavers. Leaned against the bench, close to her crossed legs was a sharp needle with spider silk threaded expertly through the eye, the tail of the thread wrapped neatly around the neck of the needle. Her face was pale, with two long elegant horns curving up and back from her head, eyes focused, watching as Sythia approached.

As Sythia, Rose and Aluba got closer, she stood, the silk unraveling from the needle’s neck as she took it in hand, looping down to the ground around her feet. She stood tall and stern though her stature itself was small, around a head shorter than Sythia. 

Sythia swallowed back the lump in her throat and spoke with false confidence, bowing in an overly exaggerated manner with a smirk on her face. “You called, Princess.”

A momentary look of shock crossed the spider's face before her eyes narrowed. “Hornet. Call me Hornet.” Her voice fell on Sythia's ears like the richest honey. It was deep and regal but carried with it a soft air of mystery. Sythia couldn't help but embrace the bubble of mischief it created in her chest. 

“Of course.” Sythia chirped, standing upright with a small bounce. “Why would a bug like you seek the company of a bug like me?” She questioned, her voice laced with playful cheer. 

Hornet's stern expression did not change. “I suppose you'd know why I would seek you out.” Her gaze fell on Rose. “You and your little ghost.” She eyed Sythia again, spotting Aluab. “And another it seems we didn't know about.”

Bringing a hand to her face, Sythia closed her eyes and nodded, ignoring the obvious reference to the small bug on her head. “Yes I suppose I do know. You've come to remind me that we're wanted in the palace if I'm correct.”

“That would be half reason.” She replied. “I've been told to bring you directly to the palace.”

Sythia stumbled, eyes wide in shock. “Hold on,” she chuckled nervously “I'm sure no exact date was arranged. I wasn't planning on paying a visit so soon.”

Hornet walked forward, grabbing Sythia by the wrist with a firm grip. The lady beetle felt her chest tighten as the smaller bug looked her dead in the eyes. “I was told you might try to run. My father wishes to speak with you today. I won't let you get away.”

Sythia's head was buzzing, she had been putting off going to the White Palace for as long as possible and now the King had sent his, stern, though Sythia had to admit, rather enchanting daughter to drag her there. If she were in her right mind, she would have quickly fought off the Princess and hidden in the furthest reaches of Greenpath, but her stern eyes made her weak in the knees and she couldn't stop the “Okay.” from making its way out of her mouth. 

-

Hornet had to half drag the reluctant trio to the front gate of the White Place. Sythia had made it the utmost difficult she could have, acting interested in any pale fern, rusty signpost or oddly shaped rock she could. Rose too, helped in this endeavor, running off when Hornet wasn't looking, getting themselves stuck in all sorts of places. Sythia was impressed, she always knew she could count on the little menace. But alas, only so much procrastinating could be done, Hornet had resolved to grabbing firmly onto Sythia's hand and pulling her the rest of the way. Sythia had made a comment about how forward the Princess was being which was met with a death glare in return. With Sythia being dragged along, Rose had no choice but to follow obediently. 

They now stood on the palace grounds. A beautiful palace built of white metal and stone lay ahead, with a moat of the clearest water Sythia had ever seen surrounding it. The palace itself was huge, occupying almost all of the space in the large cavern it resided in. Many guards lined the path to the entrance, some the typical guards seen in the city, others the guards Sythia had seen accompanying the King when she first saw him. They watched as the small group of bugs made their way to the front gate. Hornet spoke briefly to the guard at the gate who bowed, allowing them to pass. 

Sythia had to admit, the inside of the palace was spectacular. Everything was in pale grays and whites with polished pillars and railings adorning the halls. In places there were small courtyards, growing glowing roots and pale ferns. The rooms were so spacious it was hard to believe they were inside a building, even the air was as clear as the outside, perhaps even clearer. 

Hornet led the wanderers to a smaller room, it was decorated nicely with white furniture, carved elegantly with intricate patterns. On the far side of the room was a plush looking bench, covered in soft looking cushions with small tables either side, both holding a vase with white and grey plants blooming softly inside. 

“Wait here. A royal retainer will let you know when Father has time to see you.” She spoke. 

“I guess we part ways here, it was fun.” Sythia hummed in response, jokingly bowing once more, Rose mimicking the act with Aluba giving a small nod instead. 

Hornet rolled her eyes with an annoyed humph and left the room, cloak billowing behind her. Sythia couldn't help but stare at where she had left for a few moments before making her way across the room to the comfortable looking bench. How unlike the other higher class bugs Hornet was. She didn't look at her with accusing eyes and she had quite a firm grip. Oh and her voice was like the smoothest of songs. Sythia found herself smiling at the thought of the spider. She wondered if she could ask her for a sparring match once her business with the King was over. Deepnest wasn't her favourite place but she wouldn't mind fending off a few dirtcarvers to see her again. 

-

After some time of waiting and thinking, a royal retainer entered the room. They beckoned to the three bugs with few words. Once again Sythia was surprised at the lack of disgusted looks from the bug. They were polite and formal, maybe out of respect of her being a guest of the King but she found herself enjoying her time in the company of the bug. Though they didn't say much as they guided her through the palace, when they did speak, it was with a light voice and a small but genuine smile. 

They arrived at the end of a rather elegant hall, even for the standards of the White Palace. It was lined with elaborate rails and pillars, ending at a very large door decorated with a very elegant and detailed version of the Hallownest crest. Sythia could only guess this was the throne room. Two of the odd looking guards in white stood on either side of the door, curved scythes in hand. Rose tensed slightly beside her and she patted their head, reassuring them. Aluba hopped off her head, moving to hold Rose's hand. 

“My King,” the retainer spoke rather loudly. “Your guest has arrived.”

With these words, the guards opened the door in a stiff manner. The room inside was extremely spacious. A wide white carpet led up to a raised platform that the throne sat on at the end of the room. The edges of the room were decorated in well kept vines and leaves that were growing behind low railings of white stone. Wonderful arches stood beside the seated King and the wall behind was decorated in a beautiful pattern. On the throne sat the Pale King, upright and alert, eyes wide and unwavering. To his right was the large knight Sythia had seen with the King in the city and to his left was a knight she had never seen before. 

They were incredibly tall, reaching the same height as the large knight, though unlike the other knight, they were lean and only had armoured shoulder pads and chest piece. Form this amour came a long white cloak that fell down around the knights feet and draped neatly on the ground around them. Their face was stark white, with two long three pronged horns reaching out of their head. Though something about this knight struck Sythia as familiar. Their eyes were round and wide on their face, hollow, betraying no emotion. 

As Sythia walked up to the throne, the Pale King spoke. “I see you have finally decided to pay us a visit.” His voice was clear and echoed neatly in the room. His gaze fell to Aluba, eyes narrowing. “You had another.” He muttered. Sythia couldn't read the expression on his face. 

The pressure that had kept Sythia from her usual sassy remarks in the city no longer held her words. Perhaps as a result of sitting in a room that radiated the same importance for so long. “Ah, but I don't quite recall coming here of my own choice.”

The large knight tensed, Sythia could almost hear the ‘How dare you speak to the King in such a way!’ coming from his mouth. The other knight stood as still as they stood before, but Sythia could have sworn their eyes had widened ever so slightly. 

The King himself leaned forward slightly, eyes widening in mild shock before returning to an unreadable gaze. “I see. I suppose that might be true.”

“So. What is it that you'd like to discuss with a bug like me?” Sythia continued, shifting her weight to one leg slightly. 

At this the King’s eyes drew serious, perking interest form the lady beetle. “It seems that the vessel from the city was not the only one you had.” His voice sounded somewhat troubled “I wish to keep them both here within the palace.”

Sythia felt her own face grow dark. “I made it clear before that I won't give them up. Besides, it's up to Rose and Aluba to decide where they wish to be. I don't keep them anywhere they don't want to be.”

“Does that mean there are times you don't know of their whereabouts?” The King tensed slightly. 

“Of course. They may be small but they're not weak. They wander off sometimes. Often for days at a time, but they always return.”

Sythia turned her attention to Rose. They were looking right at the taller knight, all usual guards down. The tall knight caught their gaze and the two stared at each other with stoic expressions. A small revelation dawned on Sythia.

“My King, if you don't mind me asking, what exactly is a vessel?”

At this, the Pale King’s eyes widened completely, his hands gripped at the arm rests on his throne. “Why do you wish to know?” 

Sythia smirked inwardly. “Well, it's what you call Rose and Aluba, and if I'm not mistaken, our tall friend over here seems to be quite similar to them. I can only guess another vessel. You see, though it never bothered me that these two are so different to any bug I had met, I am quite curious as to their origins. I've never come across someone who called them anything other than a strange insect, yet you address them as vessel.”

The King was silent for a second, before a sigh escaped him. The larger knight beside him looked incredibly angry as he gazed at Sythia. “I see.” The King managed. “You are quite sharp to draw a resemblance between your vessels and my Hollow Knight.”

She smiled proudly. “They share that stoic gaze, I've never seen it on any other bug.”

With a nod the monarch continued. “Though you seem to be intelligent, I cannot tell you what the vessels are.”

“Ah a secret, I suppose every bug has one.” She chirped. The large knight once again scowled at her rude tone but the Pale King's expression didn't change. 

“Indeed.” He spoke. “It seems we cannot come to an agreement on the original matter.”

Sythia nodded. “I don't plan on giving up on them.” At this Rose blinked, hugging Sythia's leg. Aluba looked towards them as they did so nodding slightly. The tall knight watched intently. 

“Then a compromise is necessary. Perhaps a deal or trade.” The King’s voice was clear.

“There's nothing in all of Hallownest that I would trade for these two. No deal good enough to separate us.”

The Pale King hummed, interested. “No wealth or position I could offer would interest you I suppose.”

“I'm quite happy with my current lifestyle.” Sythia was determined, nothing could separate her from Rose or Aluba, though she could tell the King was just as determined to keep them here. 

There was silence for a while before the King spoke again. “That weapon you carry. How well can you use it?”

Sythia grabbed one of her scythes and spun it around in her hand. “I'm an expert with these. I haven't lost a match in a long time. Why do you ask?” 

The King perked up. “I hope you will be willing to compromise with me. I must say, I'm interested in your skill and devotion and I don't intend on allowing your vessels to roam free but I can see that you are just as determined to keep them by your side.”

“I'm not an unreasonable bug. What compromise do you have in mind?” Intrigued, Sythia smiled. 

“If you can prove yourself skilled with your weapon, I would gladly accept a bug like you as a knight.”

“Is that so? It's not just any bug I'd be willing fight for.” 

The large knight grumbled. “Any warrior should be grateful for the opportunity to become a knight recognised by our Pale King. It's our duty as citizens of Hallownest to give him our undying loyalty.”

Sythia had to suppress a snort of laughter. “Maybe for you big guy, but I don't throw my loyalties around so freely.” Though Sythia's tone was light, she had to admit, an instinct within her drew her to the Pale King. He spoke to her with a lack of patronising words or excessive use of the power he could so easily wield. With a word he could banish her from the palace and keep Rose and Aluba locked away forever, but instead he was talking, drawing a compromise as if he respected her wishes. Perhaps this was only because she interested him, Sythia could guess it wasn't every day the King came across a bug who didn't immediately throw themselves at his feet and shower him in loyal affection and praise. Even if she acted aloof, she had to admit the Pale King had already won some of her respect. She wouldn't be surprised if he already knew this. 

The Pale King smiled, bringing his hands together. “Well then, young warrior, what is your answer to my offer?”

Sythia found herself reflecting his smile. “I’ll take you up on that offer; I'm interested in what sort of test you have for me.”

“It won't be easy.” He warned in that clear ringing voice. “And one more thing.”

“Yes?” Sythia questioned, surprised to have enjoyed this conversation more than she thought she would have. 

“Tell us your name.”

She smiled, giving the King one of her exaggerated bows. “Sythia.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sometimes you just wanna write your character as a gay disaster. Sometimes it comes out much gayer then anticipated.
> 
> I mean,,, I'm not complaining.


	5. Chapter 5

After her forced visit, though she had to admit, rather pleasant discussion with the Pale King, Sythia had been excused from the palace, grateful that Rose and Aluba had been permitted to leave with her as long as she promised to keep an eye on them. They now walked side by side down the long bridge that led to the exit from the palace grounds into the Ancient Basin. It was a stark contrast to the cool whites and grays of the palace. Though it carried the same cold air, there was an emptiness that came with it, unsettling when paired with the darkness. There weren't many wild beasts, save for a shadow creeper or two but one had to look deep into the shadows to spot them. Sythia found they tended to shy away from the well lit paths that led directly to the trams and elevators out of the area. Husk guards and royal retainers seemed to use these paths but away from them, darkness truly did lurk in the stones. 

Sythia did like to observe her surroundings, though she never took much thought to why a place was how it was, simply enjoying its inherent nature but Rose’s unusual behaviour sat oddly in the pit of her stomach. On her way to the palace, Hornet had not given them time to truly appreciate the scenery, but now they were on an unrushed stroll back to Greenpath, the silent nature of the basin was apparent.

Rose had stopped now. This entire time, they had been slowly walking, which was highly unusual for the rambunctious little vessel. Sythia had to admit she sometimes had a hard time keeping up with her small friend; they seemed to have limitless energy, and even when they did tire, only a few moments rest at a bench was enough to get them going again. Sythia was left to wonder what hardship they had to go through to end up in the sorry state she found them in when they first met. However, the small creature had been lagging behind since they entered the dimly lit caverns, peering into the darkness every now and again, responding slowly to Sythia's calls and questions. 

The lady beetle back tracked to where Rose was now standing, Aluba close beside her staring at Rose blankly. They were staring intently at a path that led deeper into the ground. It wasn't lit at all and Sythia could feel a waft of cold air drifting from it. How strange for a draft to be coming from deeper rather than higher. She waited for what seemed like a few minutes, studying the unchanging glare of her silent friend. 

“Want to check it out?” She spoke at last. “You seemed interested, and that's unlike you.”

Rose tore their gaze from the path to look at Sythia. They placed their hands on their hips, cloak fluttering with the movement.

“Its true.” she laughed. “Normally you hit something that intrigues you with your glaive and that's the end of it. You don't tend to focus so hard.”

They turned their gaze back to the deeper path. 

Sythia looked around briefly, twitching her antenna for any indication a guard or retainer was near.

Nothing. 

She dashed forward towards the path, Aluba scuttling in pursuit. She turned to Rose as she moved. “Come on, while no one's looking.” Rose didn't hesitate in following her. 

The path was short. It lead down for a while before straightening off again. Sythia found it hard to see the walls, opting to allow Rose to take the lead. The little vessel seemed to have no trouble in figuring out the path ahead. Aluba lacked Rose's enthusiasm, and had signaled to Sythia they wanted to be carried. As she picked up the smaller bug, they turned inwards, hiding their face in the leafy garment she wore over her chest.

Eventually the path lightened up, Sythia strained to see where the light was coming from. Perhaps a lumafly lantern, but who would place one so deep in the basin? Her answer was almost immediately answered as a large door came into sight, beside it, an information tablet lit up spectacularly as they stood beside it. Sythia studied it intently, the words were written in an odd hand, a language she had never seen. The words glowed on the tablet they were written on like they held something important. Confused, she spared a glance to Rose and to her surprise, the small bug was examining the tablet with the utmost care, scanning it with a serious air, as if the foreign symbols held meaning. 

“Rose,” Sythia started gently. “can you read what's written here?” 

Rose didn't respond for a while as they re-examine the stone but after a moment in silence, they turned to Sythia and walked past her, nodding at her question. 

With a slight shake of her head, Sythia sighed. “You never fail to surprise me. A shame too, you can't even tell me what's written.”

Rose seemed to ignore this comment. They walked up to the door and placed a single hand onto it. Sythia too turned her attention to it. It carried on it a glowing shape and didn't seem to be able to open. There was no mechanism nearby and the door was much to heavy looking for two small bugs to push it open. 

The lady beetle mimicked her small companion’s action, lifting a hand to trace the shape. As her claws drew near, the space around her hand lit up in a complex pattern, repelling it with a gentle force, keeping her from actually touching the door. Looking down, she noticed it was doing the same to Rose. 

“This must be some sort of seal.” She muttered to herself, though she knew Rose could hear her. “There must be something pretty important that someone wants to hide.”

With that Sythia pulled away, waiting for Rose to take her cue it was time to leave. But the little vessel didn't move. They kept their hand to the door, staring unwaveringly at it. Sythia felt a pang in her chest. Rose really wanted to see what was in there. The pale light of the seal and its familiar shape gave Sythia a small clue as to who created it in the first place.

There was definitely something going on here. Creatures, no, ‘vessels’ with no voice and an emotionless face, a door sealed and hidden, wishing for its contents to be locked away forever and the King's secret. Sythia wasn't normally one to stick her wings where they didn't belong but a feeling of dread welled up in her gut when she thought about attempting to piece something together out of this strange mess. It was a mystery, one she didn't want any part of if she was completely honest but it changed the way Rose acted and she couldn't bring her thoughts away from it the entire trip back to Greenpath. Rose may be a little strange, but they were dearly important to her. If it meant understanding more about the little bug, finding a way to bring comfort to the pained way Rose had lingered by that door, Sythia found she didn't mind getting involved in something troublesome. 

-

“He said what?” Nymph huffed, slamming her now empty cup down. 

“It's intriguing isn't it? Rose and Aluba certainly are different but who would have guessed the King would be so interested.” Sythia hummed in response. 

The mosskin frowned, looking over to where Rose and Aluba were sitting. “I don't have a good feeling about this. Didn't you decide to stay away from nobility after what happened?”

Sythia froze. “This is different. I can't place it but the bugs of the court were different. Besides the Pale Court and nobles hardly interact.”

“I just think it's strange. You of all bugs would never want to become a knight.”

“Maybe in the past.” She hummed. “But if it means I can keep Rose and Aluba close then I wouldn't mind.” It also might let me figure out what exactly those two are, she added to herself. 

Nymph reached for Sythia's cup, drinking the tea in it. Sythia shot her an annoyed glance but the mosskin shrugged it off. “I'm just worried. You're my friend Sythia. I don't want anything to happen to you again.”

The lady beetle leaned back in her chair, looking up at the roof of her friend’s house. “It won't be like last time. There's no way I'll let that happen again.” Sitting up, she looked into her friend's eyes. “There's no way it could happen again.”

Nymph nodded “I suppose you're right. Just be careful. Nothing I say will change your mind, I know that.”

“Don't worry,” Sythia smirked. “I'll come and visit when I'm a super elite knight. You're still my oh so wonderful friend.” 

The mossy bug rolled her eyes at her taller friend's sarcastic tone. She leaned her elbow against the table, head on hand. “Unlikely, just make sure Aluba and Rose stay safe. I like those two a lot as well you know.”

“Just Aluba and Rose?” Sythia cooed. 

Nymph thew a cup at her. 

-

“I see you've come to escort us once more” Sythia, hummed. She couldn't help smirking as she saw the little spider sitting on the bench where she had first met her. 

She had received a letter asking for her and the vessels to return to the Palace. How the royal messenger managed to reach her within the twisting caves of Greenpath she would never know; perhaps the bugs that resided in the Pale Court were hardier than she first anticipated. 

“That would be the case, it seems my father wanted to waste no time.” Hornet stood, approaching the other bugs. Rose gave her a wave in greeting but the spider gave no response. 

“You're not going to grab my wrist again? As much as I enjoy the closeness, you have an extremely strong grip.” Sythia rubbed her wrist with a free hand, remembering how her arm was almost pulled out of her shell the last time she had been dragged to the White Palace. 

“If you obediently follow, I won't need to.” She responded, blatantly ignoring at least one part of what she had said. 

The trek to the Palace admittedly did not take as long as before, with Sythia deciding against her usual antics. She had been somewhat surprised when Aluba had broken away from quietly walking beside her to catch up with Hornet, looking rather curiously up at her. She had briefly returned the glance but had offered nothing in the way of friendly gestures, pulling slightly ahead of the smaller bug. 

Sythia had tried on multiple occasions to strike up a conversation but each time her remarks were shot down or outright ignored. She had gathered at this point the little spider was quite the stern, no nonsense type, reminding her somewhat of Nymph; though the small mosskin definitely had a friendlier disposition. Ultimately Sythia resolved to stop attempting to speak of small niceties and asked her a question that would perhaps illicit an actual answer. 

“The King wouldn't have told you what exactly he has in store for me?” Sythia was leaned against the walls of the elevator that led to the Ancient Basin, Hornet standing tall beside her, of course with a decent amount of distance between them. 

“I do know what my father has in mind, though the exact details were never told to me.” She was watching Rose and Aluba, who were standing at the other side of the elevator, peering through the bars at the walls around them. 

“Care to share?” The lady beetle hummed, bending her head slightly to catch the others eyes. 

“It's not my place to. You'll find out soon enough.”

And with that, their talk was over. Sythia had to admit, it was definitely a challenge to get Hornet to speak to her. The spider didn't seem thrilled at being tasked to fetch a scruffy wanderer but that wouldn't deter her from trying at a later date. She had to admit, the small princess was captivating, a part of her was worried her constant chattering was annoying but Hornet seemed the type to outright tell her to stop talking if that were the case. She considered herself safe. 

-

Walking through the palace a second time was no less amazing than the first. Hornet had taken her down a different part of the palace this time around. The wide halls had been replaced with open walkways, beautiful gardens on either side, growing large white roots and arrays of grey flowers, neatly placed and trimmed to perfection. Gorgeous benches sat in the gardens. It was wonderfully serene and Sythia would have liked to sit and rest there. They walked straight past the garden though, into a separate wing of the palace. They walked for a while longer, passing the occasional guard, though Sythia noted there was a certain lack of retainers in this part of the palace. Eventually, Hornet turned into a room; following close behind Sythia was met with an extremely spacious hall. She herself was standing on a raised platform while the rest of the room was a flat open space, the ground covered in tightly packed dirt. The walls reached up high, decorated with a few pale vines. 

“She’s here.” A voice drew her attention to the bugs that had been waiting. A pretty bug dressed in white armour was looking at her with interest through six smiling eyes. A skirt of leaves swayed slightly as she turned and smiled at another white clad knight beside her.

Sythia sighed inwardly. There were, what appeared to be five white knights and a now familiar King anticipating her visit. “Quite the audience I have here.” She spotted one knight with three long horns narrow her eyes.

“They’ll be here to watch; to judge you one could say.” The King announced.

Moving forward while still glaring, the three horned knight spoke. “My King, forgive me for this, but isn’t this a waste of our time. I’m sure, you more than us, are very busy.”

“This too is part of our work Dryya.” He responded calmly.

“Come now, isn’t it exciting, it’s not everyday we get to personally witness a new knight in the making.” A round knight added rather jubilantly, as the smaller leaf skirted knight nodded.

Sythia found herself flinching at this, she had joked about it with Nymph but the little mosskin was right, the title knight was not particularly something she wanted. She glanced down to Rose and Aluba. They were staring straight ahead at the other bugs in the room. It would be fine, dealing with bothersome things like this was a small price to pay to ensure these two were okay.

“Now then, I shall explain.” The Pale King interrupted her thoughts, drawing her attention back to him. “This will be a simple test, all you must do is beat one of my knights in a friendly sparring match.”

Simple? Sythia, shot a glance at the knights. She wasn’t very well versed in who they were, but she knew they were strong, a lot stronger than any average knight. She had boasted before that her own combat skills were nothing to laugh at, and that wasn’t necessarily a lie but it would definitely not be ‘simple’.

“Your opponent will be Ogrim.” He continued on gesturing to the round knight who had spoken before.

He wasn’t very big, somewhat taller than Sythia but he was well built, and wore some of the strongest armour in Hallownest. From smell alone Sythia could tell this bug was a dung beetle, he carried no apparent weapon but his cheerful demeanor and visible excitement at getting to fight her was enough for her to guess he would be a pain to deal with. 

“I hope you prove a worthy opponent! Let us enjoy this battle.” Were the only words he gave before diving into what Sythia guessed was the arena. She was taken aback as he tunneled through the dirt floor, hidden underground.

‘This will be an experience’ she thought, stepping into the arena, unsheathing her scythes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aw yeah, it's all coming together.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for all the support on this!   
The comments you've all been leaving are so nice and encouraging :') I really hope you enjoy the rest of the story!

As Scythia stepped into the arena, a barrier of light formed between the platform and the rest of the room, stopping anything from passing to the bugs on the other side. Rose and Aluba stepped forward, seemingly concerned about her being temporarily trapped. She raised one of her scythes and waved it briefly, attempting to signal she was okay. Stepping further into the arena, she tensed slightly. She had no idea how this knight fought, she would have to play on the defensive until she figured that out. The optimal situation would be Ogrim having a heavily ground based fighting style, allowing her to safely launch her attacks from the air. 

The ground ahead of her suddenly rumbled with movement and she braced herself. The time to think was over.

Disturbance in the dirt traveled around the arena for a second or two before the dung beetle erupted from the ground with an overly loud and very enthusiastic shout. Large, tightly compacted balls of dirt were flung into the air, and Scythia was glad she had decided to wait on the ground, there was no way she could fight in the air if those were going to be bouncing off the walls. Swiftly, she dodged to one side of a ball that was rapidly crashing towards her, it broke apart as it smashed into the ground, spraying her shell with dirt. Pushing forward, she moved towards her opponent, bringing back her scythes in anticipation to slash as soon as she got close enough. Noticing her advancement, Ogrim slammed a claw into the ground, sending a shock-wave of dirt flying towards her. 

Oh, she had not expected that.

What was the best way to dodge this? She attempted to move out of the way, putting all her force in to a jump to launch herself in the air, but her delayed reaction led to the tip of the shock-wave colliding directly with her stomach, sending her flying back. Taking a moment to catch the breath that had been knocked from her, she flew towards one of the walls, and directed her attention back to Ogrim. How could she get close if he could do that?

Dung ball.

She ducked faster than she had ever ducked in her life, wincing as the ball hit the wall just above her antenna before bouncing off again. Okay, so this knight was fast. That’s fine, she just had to be faster, and also stop thinking so much. She was definitely thinking way too hard and that was unlike her. Just react.

Putting all her strength into a kick, she pushed herself off the walls, charging again directly towards the knight. As he saw this he began to raise his claw to pound the ground again but Scythia moved back sharply, raising her right arm, launching the scythe she was holding towards him. Sythia watched as brief shock glazed his eyes as her weapon quickly spun towards him. Unable to block, the scythe smacked right into the center of his chest, rebounding back towards Sythia. Wasting no time, she flew forwards and caught it. It didn’t take more than a moment for Ogrim to regain his balance. His face was alight with joy as he watched her hurtling towards him, weapons ready. Sythia couldn’t help but return the smile. This may not be so bad after all.

-

The Pale King narrowed his eyes as the blade of that lady beetle directly hit Ogrim. He had assumed she had been exaggerating how well she could fight and would lose quickly to one of his knights. He had planned on using her defeat as a way to convince her the vessels would be safer here. Ogrim had been specifically chosen after quite a lot of thought. Based on her build and weapons she would be a fast fighter with low durability, putting her up against an agile opponent who could hit hard seemed to be the fastest way to deal with her. His attacks could cover both the ground and the air, limiting her mobility. Perhaps Hegemol would have been a better choice.

Drawing his attention back to the fight, he watched as the small bug dodged very neatly between the balls Ogrim was throwing. She had gotten faster then she was a moment ago, better at weaving through Ogrim’s attacks too. This was not going as he hoped, she was getting used to his attacks and was becoming more confident. If she got faster her speed would overwhelm the dung beetle. Her attacks had mostly been throwing her weapon from a safe distance. The Pale King had to admit, he had not foreseen her utilising her weapon in such a way, he hoped she would slip up and drop it or catch the blade as it came flying back but she caught it perfectly every time, without it hindering her building speed. Even when Ogrim retreated back underground to launch a larger scale attack or curled himself into a ball and dove to produce his larger shock-wave, she reacted perfectly. Much to his annoyance, her movements were fluid and precise, like a well rehearsed dance.

The Pale King found himself letting out a small sigh. His other knights were also closely watching. He could tell by the lack of commentary, they were also quite surprised at how well this bug could fight. He recalled telling them this would be over quickly, wishing he had been right. If only she had been an incompetent fighter.

Hornet too was watching. He had expected his daughter to have taken this seriously either way but her interest was more than he had anticipated. She was closely studying all of the movements the lady beetle was making. The spider must have been impressed to be paying as much attention as she was.

And then there was the vessels. They were being rather rowdy, the slightly taller one jumping up and down as they watched the fight, hands pressed against the light barrier. The other was noticeably less energetic but still tensed every now and again when the wander was hit. These vessels were imperfect. They should have been sealed away in the Abyss. He had checked the door after his visit to Luiren and initial encounter with one of the vessels and it was still sealed tightly. There must have been a hole the vessels managed to worm out of. The Abyss was a large place, the most likely place a small tunnel from the Abyss would lead to is Deepnest but it was also a possibility that a tunnel could lead further up the kingdom. It would be nearly impossible to find and frankly, a waste of time to search for it.

These vessels could potentially interfere with the plan he had set in place. Ideally he would cast them back into the Abyss but that wanderer was attached to them, and they were attached to her. These small vessels had emotions, thoughts, a will. It had been buried deep down, but there was a gnawing guilt in his chest as he gazed upon them. He couldn’t bring himself to return them to the void. Keeping them in the palace where they could be monitored would be the next best option.

A gasp from his knights and loud cry brought his attention back to the fight. Ogrim had been knocked over and the lady beetle was standing before him, breathing heavily. So she was that good. Ogrim took a moment before he pushed himself back up, readying to continue fighting. Though the Pale King saw no point in continuing. They had all seen enough. 

“That will be all.” He called out over the two sparring bugs. With a wave of his hand, the light barrier dissolved.

The two bugs looked back at him. Ogrim bowed before making his way back to the other knights. Isma whispered something to him, placing a hand on his back. He smiled in response. Sythia walked back with less urgency, the two vessels running up to meet her, scuttling excitedly around her legs. As she arrived on the platform she turned to Hornet and smirked. “Impressive, right?” she said quietly. The princess simply rolled her eyes.

“That was truly a wonderful battle!” Orgim called from behind him. “Your speed was impressive, I look forward to a rematch.”

The lady beetle smiled. “I could say the same. You knights really know how to put up a good fight.”

This would be difficult. “You both fought exceptionally well.” the King began, looking at Ogrim as he spoke. “I’ll discuss your performance with my knights. Hornet, take her to one of the gardens to wait.”

His daughter nodded and led the wanderer out of the room, the two vessels following closely behind. When he was sure they were unable to hear them he turned to his knights.

“You must forgive me my King.” Ogrim began. “She was an incredibly strong foe, if I were to challenge her again I’m sure I’d win.”

The Pale King shook his head. “I’m not angry with you Ogrim. She did perform a lot better than I had expected. It seems like she wasn’t speaking with empty words when she spoke of her combat skill.”

“I have to say it was quite amazing.” Isma added, her voice was alight with interest. “I wonder if she uses any charms, her final attack looked very powerful.”

Did it? He had been too lost in his thoughts to have noticed.

“Powerful or not, we still cannot accept just any bug as a knight.” Dryya had her arms crossed, eyes furrowed. “I’m sure you know this too my King. She has no sense of respect, not even offering a bow in your presence.”

Ze’mer hummed turning to Dryya “Le’mer, you are too harsh. Che’ did think the small wanderer to be exquisitely skilled. It would do no harm to grant her a chance.”

“What should we do my King? I suppose you did not expect her to best Ogrim.” Hegemol stepped forward. The other knights nodded in response.

How badly he wished things had turned out as he wanted them to. It would be a certain shame to reject such an impressive fighter but Dryya was correct in how she didn’t act with much respect, though that didn’t bother him much. It was clear she wasn’t being intentionally disrespectful and it had been an age since he had encountered a bug brave enough to immediately show their true character. 

“I’ll leave that decision to you. I trust that you all know best if she would be beneficial to have in the palace.” The knights shared glances. “Dryya, I will have her background looked into. I’ll be in my study, report to me first when you’ve come to a decision.” 

Without letting them respond, he left. 

-

How nice the palace gardens were. Hornet had taken her to quite the lovely place. In one corner was a beautiful lake, with water that shimmered almost white and planted neatly around were pale green fronds and delicate flowers. It had not been the garden they had passed on the way to the arena but it was equally as beautiful. Rose and Aluba were sitting on the bench looking very relaxed. Sythia herself was leaning against the low rails of the garden walls, Hornet standing nearby. It was a nice place to wind down after her battle. It was a truly exhilarating fight, she had not moved so fast in a long time and though she missed the sensation and the rush, listening to the sound of leaves as they gently rustled was much more her speed. 

“I must say, I didn’t expect you to fight so well.” 

Oh? Hornet was talking to her. “Really? I’m glad you think I’m pretty good.”

“I’m curious where you learned to fight. A bug who just trained a little could not pull off such a feat.” Hornet was looking directly at her and Sythia struggled to match her gaze. It was a genuine question and her eyes were a little wider the usual. Though she wished she   
hadn’t asked.

“I used to fight a lot. I suppose I just became good at it.”

That clearly didn’t satisfy the spider as she gave an unimpressed huff. “Then what about your weapon, or your charms?”

“You can tell I’m using a charm?” Scythia was surprised, not many bugs noticed.

“All bugs have a limit, quite a few of your slashes looked more powerful than they should have been. I am not blind.”

There was no reason to hide where they came from, she supposed. “The charm and weapons were something I received from my mother. They’re traditional trinkets from our homeland, is what she told me.”

“You are not from Hallownest?” This was definitely the longest conversation she had ever had with Hornet. She was glad her performance had impressed her but she really didn’t hold back when it came to personal questions.

“I was born in Hallownest. I don’t know much of my homeland, I never really thought about it.”

“I see.”

Was that all? Sythia spared a glance at Hornet. Her gaze was downcast and she had brought a hand up to her face, deep in thought. A strange feeling bubbled briefly in Sythia and she averted her eyes. 

“I am unsure about you.” She said eventually.

Sythia’s antenna twitched “What?”

“You don’t seem the type to be interested in the status of a knight. Even though my father is trying to use it to convince you to keep the vessels here.”

Sythia hummed “You’re right. A knight’s duty sound exhausting, I would rather sit in Greenpath doing nothing in particular. But Rose and Aluba are important to me. If I refused all the King’s offers I’m sure he would simply just take them away from me.”

“So it’s a matter of not wanting to be alone.” Her voice seemed resolved.

The lady beetle jumped up from the railing she was leaning against. “No, that’s - that’s not it. I’m just worried for them!” She had definitely said that way too loud.

Hornet’s eyes widened at her little outburst. She seemed surprised for a moment, then she smiled lightly and chuckled slightly. “I see.”

Sythia sighed, leaning back against the rails covering her face with her hands. The princess was more intuitive than she thought, saying something she tried to hide in such a matter of fact tone. Though she had to admit, Hornet’s smile was also very cute.

-

Sythia had been waiting for a while now. Rose and Aluba had nodded off at the bench; they didn’t need to sleep but they often drifted off briefly when they sat in one place for too long, perking up again at a slight disturbance. The lady beetle gave a bored yawn. Hornet was patiently waiting alongside them but she had begun tapping her foot against the ground. Sythia felt somewhat bad for her, being forced to keep an eye on the wanderer. The spider probably had other things she’d rather be doing. She had to apologise for that at some point. After what had seemed to be an eternity, a royal retainer with a single horn walked up to them. “The Pale King is awaiting your presence in the throne room.” Was all they said before they left.

“It’s about time.” Sythia stretched as she made her way to Rose and Aluba. She patted their heads and they both perked up, looking at her with empty eyes. “Let’s go you two.” Rose jumped off the bench first, holding out a hand to Aluba. The smaller vessel took it and let them help them off the bench. Sythia smiled as they didn’t let go, continuing to walk hand in hand.

Hornet took the lead once more, taking them to that one fancy hallway that led to the throne room. Sythia had been making mental notes on the layout of the palace but a lot of the halls looked very similar and she ended up giving up halfway through. Eventually they arrived at the great door with the fancy Hallownest crest on the front. As they approached, the door opened, revealing the King on his throne and the five knights standing beside, the taller knight from her previous visit was also with them now, standing perfectly still. It was a bit much in Sythia’s opinion. The King waited for them to move closer to the throne before speaking.

“We have come to an agreement. My knights were impressed by your combat skills and we have decided to accept you as a lesser knight of the Pale Court.” 

Sythia nodded slowly. A lesser knight, that worked for her, surely that meant she didn’t really have to do anything.

“As you know, your situation is a unique one.” he continued, “With this status you’ll be able to access the elevator from the city and the palace without supervision. You will be able to visit your vessels at anytime.”

Visit them? “They’re not allowed outside the palace with me?” Sythia glanced towards the small bugs standing beside her, they returned her stare.

“That was what we agreed on, did we not?” He narrowed his eyes.

Sythia didn’t like this. She had hoped this would be enough to convince the King to allow them to stay with her but it seemed like the Pale King was adamant in his decision. Would she never be able to stroll through Greenpath with those two, to take them to the Crossroads or Dirtmouth to visit traveling merchants or enjoy the music of public bards? She really didn’t like this. 

“Those two are used to being able to go wherever they want. Keeping them here would make them miserable. It's unfair.” She knew it was pointless trying to argue, but she could at least give this crowned bug something to think about. 

“The palace is large enough to keep them entertained. I'm sure they'll adapt fine.” He was not giving in. 

“But I -”

“Enough!” He yelled over her, impatience rising in his tone “You should be grateful I have given you the opportunity to remain close to them. I don't want to hear anymore of this.” 

The King’s outburst was startling, she didn't expect to hear him shout. It didn't sit right with her, making her feel small and uncomfortable. It was a familiar feeling, though one she hadn't felt in a long time. Unsettled, a slight discomfort wormed its way into her chest with the intent to linger. 

“Alright.” Was her only response.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's time to suffer.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter involves a description of a panic attack so please be weary if that is something that may upset you.
> 
> From this point on the fic has been so generously proofed by my good friend Kibbulation. Thank you so much for the help :') They're currently posting their own story on Splatoon. It's very very good so if you like squids then go ahead and give it a read! The name's Piperidine.

Sythia was sitting in one of the resting rooms provided for the palace knights. She had been given a new Hallownest crest, not as white and shimmering as the one she had previously had but different from the one your average sentry would hold. A couple of other knights had directed her to a place she could get armour but she would rather not wear anything too heavy over her shell. Rose and Aluba were sitting on either side of her, leaning into her. They had been worried since they had left the throne room. As much as she wanted to sit here with them forever she knew she had to return to Greenpath for a while. If she suddenly disappeared Nymph would tear her wings off. Explaining this to the mosskin wouldn’t be very easy, she already had a dislike for the King and wouldn’t be too happy to hear that she wouldn’t be able to see the vessels again. Even so, Sythia couldn’t bring herself to move, she didn’t want to just leave Rose and Aluba just anywhere while she was gone.

A sudden strong scent wafted through the door into the room she was sitting, it was an unmistakable smell. She hadn’t known this bug long but among the few she had been introduced to at the palace, she felt like she could trust him. Jolting up, startling the small bugs beside her, she dashed into the hall. The bug she had fought earlier was there, accompanied by the smaller knight with the leafy skirt. They were startled as she burst out in front of them.

“You - Ogrim, was your name right? Could you do me a favour?” She blurted out.

He blinked, bewildered, then smiled. “If it’s within my power, anything for a fellow knight.”

“Great!” She clapped her hands together, this was going well. “I need you to watch Rose and Aluba for me.” As she said this, the two vessels scuttled out of the room, standing by her legs. They looked up at the other bugs, Aluba hiding slightly behind Rose. 

The leaf skirted knight tilted her head as she saw them. “They are awfully different from the Hollow Knight. They never had as much personality as these small creatures.”

Ogrim nodded. “I must admit, I am surprised to find out there were others. I’m glad to know they’ve been in the care of such a capable bug.”

Sythia barely took note of the compliment. “They’re not very difficult, they’ll follow you around if you tell them too. Just make sure to keep an eye on them, Rose will wander off if they see something interesting.”

“Do you have something important to do?” The smaller knight asked.

“You could say that, just someone who’s probably waiting for me to get back. I need to tell her I’ll be gone for a while.”

“I see, a noble knight never leaves a friend in the dark.” Ogrim laughed. “We’ll ensure they’re well looked after in your absence.”

The lady beetle nodded in thanks and looked to the vessels. They were looking back at her, eyes round. Oh, she did not want to leave them here, but at least they would have each other. Reaching down she rubbed both their heads at the same time, wincing as a blunt pain rose in her chest. “I’ll be back, I promise. Behave while I’m gone, okay.” As she pulled back her hand, Rose reached out to grab it, sharpening the pain in her chest. “Don’t worry, Ogrim and -” She glanced towards the other knight.

“Isma.” She smiled.

“They’ll look after you, don’t go breaking too many things.” 

Sythia pulled her hand out of Rose’s grasp and the vessel let their arm linger where it was for a second before drawing it back. With another nod to the two knights she hurried off to the exit of the palace.

-

As she left the palace, Hornet had caught up to her. She was initially surprised to have the little spider tag along but she didn’t seem too thrilled to be there and had guessed she was ordered to keep an eye on her. Her initial thoughts of the King had been positive but perhaps she had been blinded by his presence and he wasn’t the amazing bug a lot of the kingdom saw him as. If he didn’t trust her, that was fine, but having another bug babysit her wasn’t a situation she liked very much, especially since it was an inconvenience to Hornet.

They had walked to Greenpath in silence, Sythia not feeling very up to talking. It had been exhausting dealing with the King and she caught herself occasionally glancing down to where Rose and Aluba would have normally been pacing beside her, only to see the cold cavern floors. That didn’t do much for her mood, deepening the turmoil growing inside her.

When they arrived Hornet had taken to waiting on the bench they had first met. Telling her to not take too long, she sent her off with a wave of her hand. Sythia wasted no time in heading right to the small mosskin’s home. The familiar sounds of mosscreeps and maskflies did little to ease her thoughts and being unable to appreciate the beauty of the green caverns only further frustrated her. She wanted this to be over fast so she could get back to the palace, despite her growing dislike for it. Lost in her thoughts, she arrived at the little village, not returning the friendly hellos from the mosskin. She didn’t bother to knock as she entered Nymph’s house.

“Nymph, we need to talk.” She hoped the mossy bug was here.

“Sythia?” The mosskin looked up from where she had been sitting, reading through something on a mildly damp page. Her face changed from slight annoyance to concern when she saw the state of her friend. “Are you okay?” Her gaze darted around the lady beetle looking for something that wasn’t there. Her gaze darkened.

“I’m sorry Nymph.” All the frustration she had been suppressing began to surface, she had to try very hard to hold back her tears. Seeing the face of the small bug always made it impossible to hold back. “Rose and Aluba aren’t allowed to leave the palace. I don’t know what to do. I can’t stand being there all the time, but I can’t leave them alone. I should have taken this more seriously.” Her words wavered as she spoke, choking on an invisible knot in her throat.

Nymph wasted no time in comforting her friend, grabbing her hand and coaxing her to sit. “Sythia, I - it’s okay. We both knew it’d probably end up like this. You know you don’t have to go back there, all the mosskin welcome you here and -” she paused as her own voice shook. “I hate seeing you like this.”

Sythia wanted to offer a smile but she couldn’t bring herself to. Breathing in deeply, she attempted to calm herself. It was shaky and lasted much longer than it should have but as she breathed out she found herself relaxing a bit. She wouldn’t let herself make Nymph upset too. Wiping away the tears that threatened to fall, she spoke. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to -” being unable to find the words she stretched out her arms and shook them around in an attempt to apologise for the mess she had just been. 

The mosskin exhaled in a sort of laugh. “It’s okay.” 

They sat in silence for a while as Sythia regained her composure.

“So, what do you want to do?” Nymph said, as she noticed the breathing of her friend stabilise.

She was silent for a moment. “I don’t want to leave those two alone. I probably won’t be around Greenpath much anymore.”

Nymph nodded, and then sighed. “That stupid King of yours. If I was half as bold as you I would give him a piece of my mind.” She had her claws clenched into a fist and was shaking them around for effect.

Sythia smiled, she would miss this. “I’ll try to find a way to get around this. I’m sure Aluba and Rose would like to see you again.”

“Just Aluba and Rose?” She smirked.

Oh, Sythia would definitely miss this.

The mosskin shook her head, mossy antenna rustling, returning to her usual seriousness. “Don’t do something that’ll get you into trouble. I know you love running from authority figures but you shouldn’t push your luck with the literal King of Hallownest.”

She laughed. Talking to Nymph was the right idea, she felt a lot better. “We’ll see about that.”

-

Nymph had ushered her out of the house, saying if she had time to sit around here she should get back to Rose and Aluba. It was hard for her to leave knowing it may be a long time before she got to see her again, but she would definitely do so, and when she did Aluba and Rose would be with her. At this moment though, she would give anything to lay down somewhere and sleep. She hadn't done so much activity in a while and her shell felt heavy from her small outburst. As she approached the bench Hornet was sitting on, a small smile bloomed on her face. The spider was sitting, legs crossed and eyes closed. The light from above hit her shell, making it glow a pale white. 

“Sorry for taking so long.” Sythia announced her presence and Hornet raised her head.

She stared at her for a while, did she look ruffled? Her eyes lacked that usual annoyed glint. “Let’s go,” Was all she said before standing and walking off ahead. 

The spotted shelled bug’s mind was still swarming with thoughts as they made their way back. She really didn’t feel like thinking of the troublesome things, so she cast her thoughts to the bug beside her. Hornet had been somewhat nicer to her then before, though admittedly, that wasn’t by much and Sythia found her harsh glares had softened and she didn’t put in as much effort to keep a sustained distance between them. She was grateful, Hornet was probably the only bug in the palace she would be able to get used to. Ogrim and Isma had seemed nice enough but they were very much loyal to the King and Sythia wanted very little to do with that bug at the moment. Sighing, she noticed they had reached the higher society section of the city. The elevator to the Ancient Basin was not far away now and even though she felt more tired than she thought she could ever feel, she almost wanted to run for it.

“Sythia?” 

Who had said that? She turned to Hornet but the voice was most certainly not hers. The princess had also heard the call as her gaze met hers with a slight look of confusion.

“Is that you Sythia?”

Turning, her heart almost stopped. She would very much like to run. Right now. As fast as she could.

An unwelcome face was looking straight at her, eyes glazed with surprise. This bug was dressed elegantly in long burgundy and purple clothes, long antenna twitching. Sitting on her back was a familiar red and black spotted shell.

“Do you know this bug?” Hornet questioned.

“No, I don’t.” She turned on her heels as she said this. There was no point in humouring this. Of course she had to run into her right now. There was not a single thing that could have gone worse. 

“Wait, please.” The other lady beetle, hurried forward grabbing Sythia’s wrist. 

She pulled it away violently, turning back around. “What!?” Was that a growl in her voice? That came out much angrier than she wanted it to. Averting her eyes, she repeated herself. “What do you want, Faulen?”

She saw Hornet out of the corner of her eye but Sythia’s gaze was downcast and she couldn’t see her eyes. She must have looked like a fool getting so mad. 

Faulen’s soft tone hardened. “What do I want? Sythia, where in all of Hallownest did you go? I was so worried.” 

She really didn’t want to do this right now, she tried to keep her voice calm despite the rage that was building. “I left. Isn’t that obvious?”

“I thought you had died when you didn’t come home. I had begged Father to hire someone to look for you but he wouldn’t listen to me. Why did you leave? Do you know what I had to go through after that?”

The knot that had disappeared from her throat returned, tighter than it was before, suffocating. She couldn’t keep her cool.

“What you had to go through? Do you even care about what you did to me?” Her breath was coming out in short gasps, and she couldn’t help from releasing a couple of hysterical laughs. “Like you had ever worried about me, you never once cared about anyone but yourself!”

Faulen stepped back, her eyes widened. “That’s not true, I -”

Sythia didn’t want to hear it. “When mother was dying you didn’t visit her once, even though she asked for you over and over! You were the one who called the guards at that time. Minn didn’t have to die like that!”

“Sythia.”

“You did it all because he told you to! And by the King, you were so concerned about protecting your own shell you never stopped to worry about us! Don’t ever tell me -”

“SYTHIA!”

Oh, that had been Hornet calling her name. She snapped out of her frenzy. The spider had grabbed her wrist and was sternly looking at her. Sythia only now noticed a couple of bugs had gathered to stare, muttering among themselves.

It felt like there were bees in her mind. She absolutely had to get away, right now.

Pulling away from Hornet she flew off to somewhere, anywhere but where she was right now. She only noticed now that the rain had thoroughly soaked her, it wouldn’t have normally bothered her but along with the tightness in her chest, it was smothering. It was way too hard to breathe but she kept flying. She needed to get somewhere where she couldn’t be found, somewhere out of the rain. In her haze she spotted a small alley, sheltered from the rain and hidden in the shadows. Sharply, she turned into it, wincing as she knocked her open shell on the side of the narrow entrance.

Even though she was out of the rain it wasn’t any easier to breathe. Her chest was insanely tight and she resolved to curling up on the floor and clutching at leafy cloth that she was wearing over her chest. Each breath had become stifled with pain and her eyes began to water. When was the last time this had happened? It was definitely before she left the city, and how she didn’t miss this horrible feeling. How did she calm down again? She wished Nymph was here to talk her through it. She wished Rose and Aluba were here to gently pat her sides until she calmed down. How could she have let this happen? How could she have gotten so worked up?

No.

She needed to think about something else. 

Anything else.

Her head was pounding, and her chest aching with each gasp. The sound of rain was so loud. 

Then there was a hand on her back. 

Shooting up, she saw Hornet had crouched beside her and was gently rubbing her back. She was looking straight ahead, not meeting Sythia’s eyes.

She remembered now. Her mother would rub her back when this happened. Then she would give her a hug and smile softly.

As the knot in her throat unraveled, the tightness in her chest gave away and she breathed out heavily, her entire body wracked with strain as tears she had been holding back for ages spilled out. She couldn’t stop herself as she reached out for Hornet, burying her face in that soft burgundy cloak.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I didn't proof read this chapter as thoroughly as I would normally before I post them so sorry if there are any glaring mistakes.


	8. Chapter 8

The Pale King was looking over a few documents that had been brought to him earlier in the day. They were the usual reports. Maintenance needed on a tramway, a status update on the Crystal Mines, an increasing amount of infected bugs and - oh, now this was interesting. A report on the state of the black egg. Preparations were almost finished, it wouldn’t be long until the business with this nasty infection would be over. Hallownest will be returned to its full glory. It would all be over soon.

A knock at his door drew him from his thoughts.

“My King, I have brought the reports on the recently admitted knight.”

“Enter.” He called, sitting up in his chair, placing the papers he was holding down on his desk. The door opened and a royal retainer entered, holding a single sheet of paper. “Is this all of it?”

The bug nodded strongly. “Yes, my King. There weren’t many records on her you see.”

With an interested hum he held out his hand, and the retainer handed over the document. “Very well, you are dismissed.”

Leaning forward in his chair, he scanned the contents. 

Sythia - Spotted lady beetle (status unknown)

Birth parents - Fern (deceased), Hark

Siblings - Faulen, Minn (deceased)

Status - Lower ranked noble

Reported missing.

And that was all. The Pale King sighed, discarding the page onto his desk with the others. Was that really it? He supposed it was fairly simple to see what happened. The bug was a runaway noble. He knew those bugs could be quite high and mighty about their status and thinking back to the behaviour she had displayed, a place like that didn’t suit her at all. Though it was a surprise to find that she had once been a noble. There wasn’t anything particularly noble about her.

This would most likely not be enough information on the knight to soothe Dryya’s troubles, there was a lot of information missing and they had no easy way of finding out what she had been doing from the time she ran away to her current state. Though he supposed he didn’t have to show his knights this document. Simple assurance that he had cleared her background would be enough for them to not question this any further.

That lady beetle hadn’t lasted very long in the palace either way. He had seen Isma and Ogrim entertaining her vessels with no sight of the bug who had proclaimed she would never leave their side. Hornet too was nowhere to be seen. He had tasked her with keeping an eye on the new knight until they were all sure she had no malintent. She clearly hadn’t been very pleased with this order, planning on returning to Deepnest before her mother slept, but she was the only bug he could think of to keep the other in line. He would have to make sure to give her time to return home before the Hollow Knight was sealed. The wyrm sighed, he half expected Hornet to return alone with a report saying the beetle had run away. That would be the simplest outcome. If she couldn’t stand living as a noble, she wouldn’t like life as a palace knight.

-

Sythia had lost track of how long they had been sitting in that shaded alley. Her tears had stopped now and only soft sobs disturbed her body. Hornet had not stopped rubbing her back since. She was sure it couldn’t have been that long. These things tended to feel like they lasted longer than they truly did. Her mind felt clear. Much clearer than it had for a while and her chest was light, void of the nasty feelings that had previously plagued her. She was tired of feeling miserable and wanted to say something more like her.

Sitting up, she tried her best to put on her favourite mischievous smile. “I didn’t know you could be so soft, Hornet.”

“And I did't know a single bug could cry so much.” Her response was immediate.

Ouch. That was harsh. But she hadn’t given her a harsh look. Was she trying to be kind by returning her remarks with ones of her own? Sythia couldn’t help but laugh. “So mean.” she managed between chuckles.

“I’m glad you seem well enough now. Would you mind telling me what that was all about?” Hornet’s tone had become slightly more serious.

Sythia leaned back against the wall. “That was-” How could she even explain? “-someone I used to know, before. We weren’t on the best terms. I suppose I’ve been somewhat stressed recently and snapped.”

Hornet nodded “Is that all?”

She sure was interested “Well, not all of it, but I’m not sure I feel like talking about that right now. Perhaps another time, that is if you’re still interested.”

“Another time then.”

She stood, offering a hand to Sythia. Taking it, the smaller bug pulled her up. Sythia had not forgotten how strong the spider’s grip was. “Say, we must have a sparring match at some point.”

“I’ll take you up on that offer.” She smiled, and Sythia found her breath caught in her throat for an entirely different reason.

As Hornet let go of her hand Sythia couldn’t help but blurt out a messy “Thank you.”

She only gave a small wave of one hand in reply.

-

Sythia skirted around a corner, hiding behind a pale pillar. Rose and Aluba were hot in pursuit crashing into each other as they squeezed up next to her. Peeking out from the pillar, she watched as a royal guard walked past, face frowning as they went. She waited a bit longer for the sound of footsteps to fade before sighing and moving away from her shelter of choice. Rose and Aluba ran ahead, a small skip in their step. Sythia smiled as she watched them. Since she had been given her title as a knight, she had spent all her time skipping out on any tasks the head guards had attempted to give her, hiding in parts of the palace she found no one often visited. The guards were very easy to outrun, and she had yet to be scolded for it. They couldn’t tell her off if they couldn’t catch her. She had been doing this for quite a while and it had made staying at the palace a lot more bearable - Rose and Aluba seemed to be enjoying themselves too.

Throwing her hands behind her head, she ambled forward, following the two vessels. Her elaborate game of hide and seek had forced her to learn the layout of the palace but even though she had given the guards the run around almost every day, she still hadn’t visited every part of the enormous structure. There were some places she didn’t have access to but with the large amount of palace she still had left to scout out, that currently didn’t bother her. She found herself in one of those unfamiliar places now. The hall they were currently in opened up further ahead into the structure of a now familiar open walkway. As she walked closer, she saw that the walkway stopped halfway into the room it led into. She could see from here there was an abundance of plants growing in there. Rose and Aluba had already reached the end of the walkway but had stopped, looking to the left. Bringing her arms back down, she quickened her pace, standing behind them and turning to where the small bugs were looking.

Sitting gracefully was a large white bug, glowing softly, roots gently blooming from her head. They stood there staring for a moment. She had her eyes closed and didn’t seem to notice they were watching her. Sythia thought there was no need to strike up an unnecessary conversation. She could tell just by looking who this bug was and she had been trying very hard to avoid bugs within that higher rank. She turned around, expecting her small friends to follow her as she made her exit but to her utmost dread, Rose had briskly walked off, directly towards the very thing she was trying to not interact with no less. As the vessel approached, her eyes opened, revealing their vibrant shining blue.

“One approaches, I had not thought you would find me here.” Much like the Pale King, her voice was clear and oddly soothing. 

Rose tilted their head. Then turned to Aluba and Sythia. She loved the little menace, she really did, but the urge to slam her face into the wall was almost too strong to resist. 

“I see that spotted one is here too. I have heard much of you from Dryya.” She was now looking directly at the lady beetle. With a sigh, Sythia gave up.

Walking up to the white root, Aluba followed. “Dryya’s opinion may be biased. I am almost certain she hates me.” 

The White Lady hummed gently. “I must say, she did not use many kind words but you must be tolerant of her. Her stern deposition does not come from a place of hatred.”

Sythia nodded briefly. What was she supposed to say? The root was staring at her with wide glowing eyes like she was expecting something. She stared for a few seconds, shifted her gaze to Rose and Aluba, then blinked.

“The children have bonded to you quite strongly. It relieves me to see them in such a state. I must thank you for your dedication to their well being.” 

“You’re welcome?” She managed, thoroughly confused. What in the name of Hallownest was she talking about?

The large root straightened her posture slightly, noticing the question in her tone. “Yes, I suppose you wouldn’t know of the true nature of these children.”

“Do you?” Sythia asked. It was a silly question, it was clear the Queen knew, but she didn’t seem as reserved as the other palace bugs when it came to talking. Maybe she could find out something about her small companions.

“More than I would like to, but perhaps it’s a truth you would rather not hear.”

No, she would definitely like to hear it. Thinking of a way to draw out information form the pale root, Sythia was distracted as another bug briskly entered the garden.

“My Queen, this is where you -” Dryya paused as she saw Sythia, her face darkening. “What are you doing here?”

Of course. 

“Now Dryya, I only wished to meet with the bug who had been taking care of these children. Though it was not a planned meeting, I would say.” The White Lady stood, making her way over to the three horned knight. “Come now, let us go.”

The white clad knight turned to follow but she paused to turn to Sythia. “I heard you’ve been avoiding your assignments. Try not to cause more trouble for us.”

-

“I don’t understand? What did I do to make her so mad?”

Sythia was standing now at a position she had actually been assigned. She guessed Dryya had told the guard in charge of her where she had been hiding and they had dragged her to her post with some very harsh words given as a warning. As always, Rose and Aluba had followed and they stood at either side of her, Rose holding their glaive in a way that mimicked the kingsmoulds, as she had found they were called. It was quite amusing. Ogrim and Isma has passed by and struck up a friendly conversation with her. Since they had watched the two vessels, Sythia had heard that they found them rather fun and she had enjoyed telling them about the mischief the two had caused in Greenpath. They were indeed some of the only faces she was happy to see among the palace personnel. Isma was incredibly sweet and when he wasn’t going on about how much he loved serving the Pale King, Ogrim wasn’t bad either, in fact she quite liked his constant upbeat attitude. When Hornet wasn’t here, they were her next best bet for some decent company.

“Dryya can be a bit-” Isma paused, choosing her words carefully “...Hard on other bugs. I’m sure she’s just being cautious. Nothing personal.”

“It feels pretty personal to me.” Sythia crossed her arms. She had been told to keep her weapons out at all time when standing guard but that was no fun. Rose replaced their glaive on their back in favour of mimicking Sythia’s movements.

“Now, I’m sure with time she’ll come around.” Ogrim laughed. “You are quite the wonderful bug; once she has put aside her suspicions I’m sure she’ll lighten up.” 

“Maybe if you acted with more poise, she would change her opinion of you.” Isma suggested.

“No way,” She would rather have her antenna cut off then start acting as stuffy as some of the knights did. “I’m not changing the way I act to win her approval.”

The two knights exchanged glances. “I suppose in that way you two are quite alike.” Isma smiled.

“What are you talking about?” The lady beetle’s eyes widened. She was nothing like that overly diligent bug.

“You are both extremely stubborn.”

Ogrim chuckled slightly at this and Sythia resisted the urge to grab the white knight around her shoulders as she might have done to Nymph when she made a similar smart comment. She couldn’t argue with that. 

As the dung beetle laughed, Sythia noticed someone approaching from down the hall. The tall figure came closer, walking with elegance, long pale grey cloak dragging behind. Ogrim and Isma had ceased their humoured smiles and turned their attention to the approaching bug. They halted once they had reached the small group of bugs, looking blankly at Rose and Aluba. The two vessels returned the blank stare with ones of their own. The knight nodded ever so slightly before continuing on their way.

Sythia sighed, leaning back against the wall. “That Hollow Knight sure is a mystery.”

Isma and Ogrim shared another glance, though this one lacked smiles. Their eyes glazed with concern. Isma took a small breath.

“Say, Sythia, you know of the infection if I am right?”

“Is there a bug who doesn’t?” An odd topic choice. It wasn’t something she liked to talk about very much.

Ogrim continued in place of the smaller knight. “Our dear King has been working tirelessly to provide salvation to the bugs of Hallownest from this plague. The Hollow Knight is part of the plan he had assembled.”

“Really?” Her antennae twitched. “How does one knight stop such a horrible thing? Last I checked you cannot cut sickness with a nail.”

“This sickness isn’t something as natural as any other would encounter.” Isma sighed, cupping the side of her troubled face in one hand.

Naturally, Sythia had noticed that already. Bugs that were perfectly healthy would lose their minds entirely. Their eyes would glow a horrible orange and they would become terribly aggressive. Most would mumble things about a light. It was haunting. “So?”

Isma shook her head, “We shouldn’t really say. It’s not our place to.”

Sythia had to stop herself from letting out a rather annoyed ‘really?”. Why even bring it up if they weren’t going to tell her everything?

Ogrim cleared his throat, forcing himself to try and sound as jubilant as he normally did. “It was nice chatting with you but we must be going. We will see you at another time.” Isma nodded in agreement and the two headed off on their way.

The lady beetle sighed. Why had everyone she talked to that day been so cryptic? Rose and Aluba seemed to notice her annoyance. Their eyes met and Rose gave the smaller vessel a nod. Aluba rustled with something in their cloak briefly, drawing Sythia’s attention.

“What’s the matter?” She asked, kneeling to look the bug in the face, though even kneeled, she still stood a whole head taller. 

After a moment more, Aluba pulled out a crumpled little bouquet of small grey flowers and leaves, clearly taken from the various places they grew around the palace. They presented it to Sythia, holding it high, covering their face with the shrubs.

It was a habit of the small bug. When they had been in Greenpath, Aluba would return from spending a day with Nymph, carrying all sorts of wild plants, and hand them to Sythia. They would always be somewhat squashed but the gesture was so incredibly sweet Sythia couldn’t stop smiling whenever she received one.

The vessel peeked out from behind the bouquet, tilting their head when Sythia didn’t take it. Smiling, Sythia patted their head, she didn’t stop until Aluba fought their way out from underneath her claws. They ran around in a small circle, coming back to where they had been previously standing, stretching their arms out again, offering the pale ferns to Sythia once more. 

Gently she took them from their small hands. She was sure the smile on her face at that moment was making her look like a fool. These bugs couldn’t talk at all, they knew that, and Aluba and Rose put in the extra little effort to show Sythia when they were grateful. It made her ridiculously happy that they would go so far as to make sure she didn’t notice when they were preparing something for her, even though they were together all the time. 

“Aluba you little beast.” She muttered, pulling them in for a hug. One of her really tight ones. Aluba struggled for a moment before giving in. A pat on her arm and a blank look from Rose told her the taller of her small friends wanted in on the hug. With one vessel in each arm, she pulled them in for a group hug. She couldn’t help the happy chirping that rumbled in her throat.

These two were so incredibly important. Putting up with life in the White Palace wasn’t so bad if it meant she got to be with them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The White Lady, also known as my good friend, free exposition.


	9. Chapter 9

Why was she here? That was an impulsive question that had crossed her mind. She was here for Rose and Aluba, Sythia had told herself that many times. The real question was why was she here, in this room, with three of the King’s five closest knights? Ogrim had found her resting on top of one of the railings that overlooked a courtyard and had called her down to ask her to follow. It was a trap. She thought he was only going to ask for a nice conversation or a rematch of their battle, which had seemed liked eons ago. He had led her to this room, and placed a steady claw on her back to stop her from running as he opened the door. Utter betrayal. Rose and Aluba were standing behind her, Rose bobbing up and down impatiently. She felt a pang of empathy for them. She wanted to get out of here too. Hornet hadn’t visited in a while either and she wanted to see her and tell her all about the things that had mildly inconvenienced her. Not that the spider would care much. Sythia mostly wanted to hear the sound of her voice.

Hegemol lifted a report and cleared his throat, disrupting her thoughts. “I have received a report about a rampaging bug in the Fungal Wastes. The sentries situated at that station seem to be having trouble dealing with it and have requested assistance.”

Sythia raised her hand “That’s very nice but why exactly am I here?” 

They all turned to look at her and she swore she heard Dryya sigh from across the table. 

The large knight continued. “Our King has assigned you to check on the situation along with Ogrim and Dryya.”

Sythia had to suppress the sigh that wanted to escape. There was no running away from this one. “I suppose Rose won’t be allowed to tag along.”

“Naturally.” Dryya huffed. 

Clearing his throat again, Hegemol continued. “According to what the reports say, the beast in question is a long, large, tunnelling bug. It’s highly armoured and aggressive and is causing a great amount of trouble for the bugs trying to pass through.”

Sythia hummed lazily. “Doesn’t seem like something that would be in the Wastes.”

Dryya ignored her comment. “Is this really something we should be dealing with? Isn’t the Fungal Wastes under the protection of those mantis, why should we interfere?”

The larger knight spoke softly. “The beast is apparently outside the mantis’ village and is causing the most damage around the paths built by our King. The mantis tribe aren’t interfering.”

“I see, I suppose we have no choice.” Dryya nodded, then turned to Sythia. “I do not see why we have to bring her with us.”

Sythia held up her hands in mock surrender, saying nothing but pulling a very unconcerned face that seemed to annoy the white clad bug even more.

“This is a direct order from the King, Dryya. It would be easier to take her along, I’m sure if you really don’t want her help you could just ask.”

“I’m good with just standing around.” The lady beetle smiled.

“Absolutely not, if you are coming, you are going to work.” Dryya hissed.

There was no winning with her, Sythia thought.

-

“I must apologise,” Ogrim chimed in once they had left the room. Dryya had told them to prepare then meet her at the palace gates. “I know how hard you try to avoid doing anything but I cannot ignore a request from my dear King.”

“It’s okay.” She smiled, she couldn’t hold it against the dung beetle. He was brutally honest and sweet. He would feel bad if she got mad at him, though she had to admit she was irritated. That King knew there would be other knights that would fit this job better than her. She had a suspicion he had only done this to make her uncomfortable. 

“You don’t suppose Isma would mind watching these two?” Sythia signalled to Rose and Aluba. The two looked up at her as she did so.

“I’m afraid not. Isma is not here at the moment.”

Wonderful. “Now isn’t that quite the problem.”

“I’m sure they will be fine on their own. They are quite the hardy duo, no need to worry so much.”

Sythia frowned. He was probably right. Rose and Aluba would be fine on their own for a while but she wanted to make sure she would be able to find them when she came back. Leaving them to their own devices would probably result in a thorough search once she returned. “You’re not wrong. Give me a moment to make sure they don’t go wandering off.”

“Very well, I shall meet you at the gates.” He gave her back a firm pat, unbalancing her slightly before heading off. She smiled as she watched him go. Hopefully having him with her would stop Dryya from ripping into her too much. 

She turned back to the vessels, leading them down a hall to a garden she particularly liked. As she walked into it Rose and Aluba followed. Bending down to meet their eyes, she smiled softly. How she didn’t want to leave them on their own. They seemed to know she was leaving and Aluba walked forward, holding her wrist in a gentle grip. 

“Wait here you two and don’t move. I promise I’ll be back soon.”

Aluba didn’t let go and she had to pull her arm out of their small hand. They looked her dead in the eye as she did so, looking distraught for a bug who couldn’t emote. She patted their head.

“Don’t worry, Rose will look after you.” She turned to Rose and the taller vessel had their head down. 

The vessels would go off on their own occasionally when they lived in Greenpath with no issue. They must hate it in the palace to hold to her so much now. She had felt guilty the last time she had left them on their own, and they had not stopped clinging to her after she had returned. But last time Ogrim and Isma had looked after them, and now they were all alone in a palace they hated. Sythia really didn’t want to leave them.

The lady beetle stood, brushing away her wavering feelings. The faster she got this done, the faster she could come back. Walking past them, she tried her best not to look back, when something grabbed her leg. She had expected to see Aluba still trying to cling on but was surprised to find it was Rose who had grabbed her. Even Rose was uncomfortable with this. Holding her breath, she pulled her leg free and forced a smile. “I’ll be back, wait for me.”

-

Dryya had hurried their small party to the Fungal Wastes. Sythia was thankful for her bossy nature for once. It was clear she also just wanted to get this over with. The walk to the Wastes didn’t take nearly as long as her usual path to Greenpath but that was to be expected. The fungi filled caverns were only just outside the City of Tears. They first made their way to the sentries station. Ogrim had tried to keep the mood high with an occasional word or two but Sythia found it hard to respond when the only thing that was on her mind was getting back to the vessels as fast as possible. 

As they arrived at the outpost a winged guard greeted them very formally and led them inside. Sythia followed close behind the white armoured bugs, looking around the post. There were a couple of mushrooms growing in the corner of the halls and vines creeping in through the windows. Were these bugs too busy to clean up? She had expected they’d at least want the place to be clean when knights as high ranking as Dryya and Ogrim were dropping by. Apart from the native growth, the structure was built with the familiar spiralling patterns of Hallownest architecture, all in blue stone and decorated with the crest here and there. It wasn’t anything spectacular, though she supposed spending so much time in the palace would ruin all other Hallownest builds for her.

They were led into a small room with a rather large bug dressed in blue armour sitting behind a desk that had paper neatly piled up and a quill resting beside a pot of ink. The guard that had led them there bowed briefly to Ogrim and Dryya before leaving, not sparing a glance at her. Not that she cared. 

“Dryya, Ogrim. I had not thought such capable knights would have responded to our call,” She said, standing, sounding delighted that they were here. 

“Would you care to brief us on the matter?” Dryya responded, getting straight to the point.

“Of course.” The head sentry’s tone was dire. “A beast appeared not so long ago. As stated in my report, heavily armoured and infected. I have never seen a bug like it before.”

Sythia inwardly groaned. Of course it had to be infected.

“Any other details?” Dryya pushed.

“Yes, of course. It had two sets of eyes and mandibles. Many legs too. Our nails and spears were useless against it.”

Dryya seemed to think for a moment but Sythia knew from the vague description what it might be. She hoped she was wrong because an opponent like that would not be easy to beat. “A garpede.” She added.

“Excuse me?” The sentry asked, slightly bewildered that Sythia has spoken. The other two knights looked back at her too. Dryya looked as angry at her as ever.

“A beast that normally lives in Deepnest. It wouldn’t normally wander in to brighter caverns but if it’s infected I suppose there’s no way to tell what it will do.”

“You’ve been to Deepnest?” Dryya questioned.

“Once, it was hard to get into and frankly quite horrifying. Garpedes aren’t going to be easy to fight. Their shells are impossibly hard and if this one is actively aggressive then it will be even more difficult. I’m surprised no one has died yet.”

They were silent for a moment. She had told them what she thought would be useful. A garpede was an impossible foe. They should just head back to the palace now.

“I’m sure no matter how thick their shell, they’ll be no match for us.” Ogrim beamed.

Dryya nodded. “Maybe for you it was a formidable foe, but we are the King’s knights. A simple beast should pose no threat.”

Sythia rolled her eyes. “Don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

-

The head sentry had led them to a part of the Fungal Wastes that would have certainly been part of a busy path at some point. The mushrooms had been neatly filed back to the side of what would have been a neatly laid out path but was now a mess of overturned stones and large holes in the ground. There were also sizeable holes in the walls and a thick smell in the air, no doubt one that belonged to the infected bug. The sentry backed away as Dryya took the lead once more. Sythia could have sworn she saw a flash of fear glaze her blue eyes as she stepped back. The cavern was silent, eerily so. Dryya signalled with her hand for the other knights to move forward. Anticipation boiled in the lady beetle’s stomach and she instinctively pulled out her scythes. Dryya too had drawn her lance out and widened her stance. Did she plan on waiting for the garpede to show? That could take forever and Sythia could not stand being this tense. Slowly, the three bugs moved forward into the centre of the room. Sythia had noticed the sentry had stayed at the edge of the room, looking on nervously. She tensed even more as they rounded one of the holes in the ground. The inside looked dark and it seemed to go down for quite a while. It wasn’t the hole itself that made Sythia uneasy but the size of it. It was huge; massive even. Much, much bigger than the garpede tunnels she had seen in her visit to Deepnest. Three, no four times the size. She knew when fully infected, bugs bodies tended to swell, but this was ridiculous. 

The ground suddenly rumbled and Sythia could have sworn her heart stopped. She had to widen her stance to keep her balance as a huge bug erupted from the hole beside her. Failing in her attempts, she stumbled back, fluttering her wings rapidly to stop herself from falling over. The garpede was maybe four times the size of a normal one, in places where its shell would normally form the different sections of its body, lumps of foul smelling infection had formed, pushing its shell up and out at a very painful looking angle. Its mouth was dripping with orange saliva and bright orange growths pulsed unnaturally where its eyes should have been. Dirt was flung everywhere as the garpede emerged, and sparing a quick glance to the other knights she could see the shock on their faces.

-

Rose kicked their feet as they sat on the bench Sythia had left them on. Aluba had not stopped pacing since, despite Rose’s best efforts to calm them. Rose didn’t like this either. They wanted to go home to Greenpath. They wanted Sythia to come back soon. Watching Aluba as they paced, Rose jumped slightly. An idea. Hopping off the bench, they approached Aluba. The other vessel paused as they walked over, reaching out for their sibling. Rose took their hands, holding them firmly. They nodded to the smaller vessel, pointing to the exit of the garden. Aluba paused for a moment, processing what Rose was telling them. They then hesitated for another moment, then nodded. Rose didn’t wait, letting go of one of their sibling’s hands, pulling them along by the other. With no one to supervise them, they could do what they wanted. 

Rose dragged Aluba down the halls of the palace. They had memorised them. The royal retainers would not try to stop them, but a guard might. They needed to avoid the guards. Rose knew a path they didn’t patrol often, it was one Sythia used to escape from duties. The path had a large window that overlooked the front courtyard that could be opened. It would be the best way to escape unnoticed, it had worked on previous occasions. They quickened their pace ever so slightly, Aluba struggling to keep up. As the two vessels turned a corner, they spotted their larger sibling.

They paused. 

The Hollow Knight. The Pure Vessel. A sibling that would soon be saved thanks to the effort of another. But that wasn’t important now, that could wait for later, when they saw the others. Now they were going to Sythia. Rose and Aluba passed the tall vessel and they turned to watch them go.

After a quick walk, they arrived at the window. No other bugs seemed to be around and Rose didn’t hesitate as they pulled on the glass. The window slid open and Rose peered out. The fall was fairly long, but it was hidden around the back side so no one would see them. Aluba hated this part but it was part of the fun for Rose. The smaller vessel flinched as Rose let go of their hand and promptly jumped out, hitting the white paved yard with a thump. They looked up, waiting. Aluba peered out of the window and Rose waved to them. After hesitating, Aluba followed, less graceful with their landing but safe nonetheless. Sneaking past the guards at the main gate would be near impossible but Rose knew of another way. A hidden station shown to them by another sibling. They had no map to signal to the stag where they wished to go, but they would make do somehow. Aluba gripped their hand tightly once more as they rounded the back of the palace towards their destination.

-

“By the King, what is that?” Ogrim yelled, his voice dark, carrying none of his usual cheer.

“Don’t let it intimidate you.” Dryya responded. 

If she wanted to say something else she was cut off as the massive beast crashed down around them. Sythia darted out of the way as fast as she could, feeling her blood run cold as the ground around where the garpede hit had been turned up. That would squash her flat. She searched the other side of the garpede, relieved to see that Dryya had dodged the attack, Ogrim too sprouted out from the ground looking rather disorientated. Retreating underground may have not been the best idea. 

Sucking in her uncertainty, Sythia launched a scythe at the garpede as it wriggled back up, infection dripping from where a couple of growths had burst. Her scythe bounced right off its shell, reeling back to her. She caught it quickly, dread growing in her as the garpede seemed completely unfazed. 

“Our attacks won’t do anything to it!” She called out to the other knights.

“Not with that attitude.” Dryya huffed as she ran towards the garpede, bringing her lance back and firmly stabbing it into the gap between its shell the infection growths had created. The garpede wailed as she did so, reeling up as Dryya jumped back, pulling out her lance. Turning towards her, the beast spat out pellets of infected venom towards the three horned knight. Moving fast, she easily dodged two of them, slicing the third, wincing slightly as the spray hit her armour. 

“Not bad.” Sythia muttered, watching as the garpede retreated back into the ground. She was about to fly towards them when Dryya waved her away.

“Stay spread out. If we’re all together, we’ll be an easier target.” 

Ogrim nodded with a jubilant laugh and ran to the other side of the cavern. It would be dangerous to burrow with the garpede in the ground at the same time. 

They waited once more as the cavern fell silent again, save for the sound of Sythia’s wings buzzing. Then the rumbling. The ceiling shook as the garpede fell from above, spraying infection as it fell. The spray hit Sythia’s arm and she pulled it back towards her body. It stung way more than any acid pool in Greenpath and she found herself shaking her arm to get the drops off. They slid off her shell easily but the pain still lingered.

She barely heard someone yell “Throw your scythe!” and with the pain burning her arm she summoned all the strength she could and tossed her scythe without quite looking where she had thrown it. It hit the garpede in a weak point in its shell but there had been a pulsing infected growth there and as her blade hit, it exploded, making the garpede roar in pain, directing its attention to her. She watched as the blade she had thrown was launched into the ground by the garpede. Sythia needed to get to it before it was crushed but the beast had decided to charge directly at her. The lady beetle took a deep breath and backed up towards the wall, waiting for the infected bug to draw closer. As it charged towards her she swiftly flew up and out of its way, heading straight for her scythe once she heard the sound of it burrowing into the wall.

“Pay attention, Sythia.” Dryya yelled as she grabbed the weapon.

“I know.” She muttered under her breath, not even getting a moment to think before the garpede burst out from the far wall, it halted briefly before raising up and slamming its body into the ground, sending rocks and earth flying towards them in a sizeable shock wave. Ogrim burrowed down in attempts to avoid it, while Dryya hid behind an upturned paving stone. Sythia flew over it quite easily but was almost caught by some of the infection venom the beast had spit up after. It retreated back into the ground after.

“It’s fast for something so large,” Ogrim panted as he resurfaced. 

“We need to get it’s weak points while it’s at the surface.” Dryya called out. “If we aim for the gap in its shell at the point between its head and body we should take it down quickly.”

“Didn’t it have that pulsing goop around its neck? I don’t know if you saw but the last time I hit one of those, it exploded.” Sythia added.

Dryya huffed. “Then let's hope the force of that takes its head off.”

Was she always this brutal? Sythia winced. She would not like to fight Dryya.

The garpede emerged once more. This was it, they would end it here. Ogrim had a tightly packed ball of dirt ready to fling first when a glint caught Sythia’s eye. At the far end of the room, there were two small bugs. They had just entered the room, one brandishing a glaive and the other cowering behind. Sythia’s stomach dropped.

Rose and Aluba.

The garpede had emerged just above them. If they launched their attack now, they would be caught up in the explosion and would be crushed when the garpede fell. She violently whipped her head around to Ogrim.

“Wait!” She screeched.

The dung beetle looked at her confused. The garpede grew closer and the three bugs had to quickly move out of the way and it dove past them back into the ground.

“What are they doing here?!” Dryya growled as she spotted the vessels. 

“They must have followed us. I’ll get them out of here.” Sythia didn’t wait for a response before she darted towards the small bugs. Rose ran to meet her and Aluba stumbled after. As she got closer she could see Aluba was wide eyed with fear and was shaking more than she had ever seen them shake. The garpede had terrified the poor thing.

She put away one of her scythes and scooped Aluba up. “You two shouldn’t be here. You need to leave now.”

“Look out!” She heard Ogrim’s voice before the ground beneath her burst open. 

The garpede had tunnelled directly underneath her and the shock of the impact sent her tumbling across the room. She couldn’t keep her grip on either her scythe or Aluba and her throat tightened as she lost sight of the small bug in the spray of dirt. The air was knocked out of her as she hit the ground and for a moment her vision was white. She thought she heard someone yell before being dragged behind something. Another loud thud echoed through the cavern and the ground shook again before her senses returned. Grabbing the scythe that was still on her back she stumbled up.

“What was that?” She managed in disorientated words.

Her vision blurred slightly as she stood and looked back in the direction she had dropped Aluba. The ground had been overturned again, presumably another shock-wave. Rose was rising to their feet from the other side of the cavern but all sound drowned form her ears as she saw a broken shell lying in the upturned dirt.

It had been split along the crack, the larger half had fallen away and tumbled down the mound of dirt, while the smaller half hung from the long grey cloak that lay still in the wreckage. There was something black that leaked from it and it sprouted up momentarily. Was she seeing things? It looked like Aluba. It was dark, and wispy and stared with round glowing eyes. And then it was gone. 

There was only a broken shell.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh yeah, it's real painful hours.


	10. Chapter 10

Sythia couldn’t hear anything. Was she even breathing? Someone had grabbed her shoulder and shaken her but she had hardly noticed. 

Aluba.

She had to check if they were okay. 

The ground shook again and the beast lunged towards the knights. She stumbled out of the way, keeping her eyes on the unmoving shell. A rock had hit her head from the impact and her vision blurred for a second. The rumbling stopped and her vision steadied. Quickening her pace, tripping over mounds of broken rock and upturned mushrooms she made her way to the vessel.

The lady beetle fell to her knees, reaching out her arms to grab Aluba and pull them back up to their feet. But as her claws met the cloak that should have contained the small bugs body, they only grabbed the loose grey material. Dropping her gaze slowly, she noticed where the small bug’s head should have been was half of an empty shell, the other laying by her leg, streaks of black lining the inside.

Wait.

What was happening?

She could feel pressure building in her chest. It was burning. Painful, as if a nail had been driven right through. Her vision blurred again and she could have sworn she was choking. What had just happened? Where was Aluba? She was just holding them. She had just seen them, trembling in the way that they did. What was this broken shell? The world was buzzing around her.

Another tremor. Looking back up she spotted the garpede. It had charged right through Ogrim and Dryya and was heading in her direction. But it wasn’t facing her. Whipping her head around she saw it charging right at Rose. The vessel was shaking, glaive in hand, stance low. Their eyes were dark, darker than Sythia had ever seen. Rose was backed up against the wall, and Sythia knew they weren’t one for moving out of the way. 

“NO. STOP!”

Not again.

Sythia moved and the world blurred around her, she grabbed the scythe that had been blown away as she ran. The garpede wasn’t that fast. She could get to it first. She could hear the others calling for her, or at least she thought she heard them. Blood was roaring in her body as an uncontained rage spilled out of her. Pushing hard off the ground, she jumped, aiming directly for the space between the beast’s head and their body. She landed on its back, dropping her body and sinking her lower claws into the exposed part of its shell, not wincing as the infection seeped around her feet. Gaining her balance, she brought her scythes up, eyeing the growth of pulsing infection right before her. It was almost the same size as her but she didn’t hesitate and she brought her raised arms down, stabbing directly into the growth.

As her blades pierced the infected beast, the growth exploded. Sythia heard the garpede roar as the force pushed her back. Her weapons had been blown out of her hands and she crouched close to the writhing beast, gripping its cracking shell in an attempt to brace herself. The sound of the explosion rang in her head and the burn of the infected spray choked her. She definitely wasn’t breathing at this point. She could feel something falling. Was it the garpede or her? She couldn’t tell if her grip had loosened and she couldn’t open her eyes. The cavern noises drowned out around her as her consciousness slipped.

-

A numb pain rippled through Sythia's chest. Her eyes were heavy and she had to force herself to keep them open. As her sight focused, she realised the ceiling was unfamiliar. Rising slowly, she heaved as her muscles groaned in protest. Looking around the room, she noticed it wasn’t very full. It was dark and empty save for a chest, another bed and an empty lumafly lantern. Taking a deep breath, she thought.

What had happened? They had been fighting that garpede. It wasn’t going too badly when-

Oh.

Sythia bolted off the bed, stumbling as her numb legs buckled. Spotting her scythes, she heaved herself over to them, noticing one of them had the edge chipped off. Grabbing them she struggled out of the room. The hall was familiar, lined with pillars of blue stone with small mushrooms growing in shaded corners. This was the sentry’s outpost. Making her way down the hall, she recognised the room they had entered earlier and could hear familiar voices inside.

“Ogrim, Dryya.” She managed. The smallness of her voice surprised her.

The two bugs turned in shock as they noticed her. The head sentry from before was with them, as was Rose. As the vessel saw her, they ran over, grabbing her leg and hanging on tightly. The force of the small bug almost knocked her over and she had to grab the side of the door frame to keep her balance.

“What are you doing?” Ogrim yelped, he sounded worried.

“What happened?” Glancing down to Rose, her chest tightened. They were shaking. “Where’s Aluba?”

The knights swapped hesitant looks.

“Sythia, they're-” the dung beetle began, but paused. 

“Dead.” Dryya finished, firm.

She held her breath. “What?”

The three horned bug sighed. “You saw them, didn’t you?”

Sythia felt the little strength in her legs melt and she sank to the ground. Rose backed away somewhat, staring at her with round eyes. She had remembered seeing the small bug lying in the dirt. Their shell was broken, but that was normal. Aluba had a broken shell after all. Was it always that broken? There was something else. A shadow she remembered seeing. It had looked at her, the same way Aluba would. She had seen that, or had she? The memory hurt to recall. She didn’t want to think about it. That shadow wasn’t the pale shelled bug she loved. That bug didn’t move when she held it. That bug's shell had laid in pieces before her.

“Sythia.” She heard Ogrim whisper.

The lady beetle sank further towards the floor as a cold wave shook her body. Dropping her scythes, she gripped the leafy cloth around her chest, pulling it away from her. It was suffocating. She couldn’t breathe. She had Aluba in her arms, how could this happen? If they had stayed where she left them, if they had never come to the palace. How could she have changed this? It was unfair. It was familiar. It hurt so much. 

A sob wracked her body and her throat tightened. She wanted to scream but that wouldn’t make her feel better. Warm drops fell onto her legs as tears began to fall. Her head was pounding and she couldn’t think of anything other than the small bug. Rose moved forward, grabbing tightly around Sythia’s torso. They were still shaking and Sythia couldn’t find any comfort in their hold. Crying harder, she pulled the vessel closer. 

-

The Pale King walked through the palace halls, deep in thought. He had just finished speaking with a messenger that had come from the black egg. The construction had been completed and with that, all the pieces of his plan were set. The time was coming soon, all he needed to do was contact the dreamers and Hallownest would be free from that light. The patter of feet drew his attention and he spotted his daughter, she lowered her head slightly as they locked gazes and then briskly approached him.

“Father, you wouldn’t know where Sythia is?” She asked.

Hornet had never been very formal with him; he guessed it was the teachings of the weavers that made her that way. Those spiders didn’t like him much, interfering with the construction of the tramway he had planned to build to the point he had to abandon the project. That had been before Hornet was born. She had become a good link between Deepnest and Hallownest, keeping his kingdom on the good side of those beasts. He could deal with her being less formal than other members of his court.

“I sent her on a mission along with Dryya and Ogrim. They should be back soon.”

Hornet widened her eyes. “You sent her out? What of those vessels?”

He closed his eyes. “Dryya assured me they had been left behind. There’s no way they could get out without me realising.”

Hornet raised on eye. She didn’t look like she believed that but she didn’t say anything else.

At that moment Dryya walked up from behind the spider and she turned around. “My King, this is where you were.”

“You have returned.” He spoke, walking past his daughter. “What became of that beast?”

“We dealt with it.” The knight hesitated a moment. “Though I would like to discuss the details with you privately.” 

“Very well.” He nodded. 

Hornet turned to Dryya. The two were similar in their stern nature, the King had come to find. “Where is Sythia?”

The Pale King had to admit, despite seeming reluctant at first to keep an eye on that beetle, Hornet had been doing a very good job at it.

“The east garden, where she always is.” Dryya replied, looking away.

What was that glint in her eye just then? Something had happened and Hornet too had noticed that. The spider didn’t bid them farewell as she briskly walked away.

The wyrm turned to face his knight, and she straightened her posture as he did so. “What happened?”

“We successfully disposed of the beast causing the commotion. It was a highly volatile infected garpede that had left Deepnest.” She paused for a moment and the Pale King waited for her to continue, that wasn’t all of it. “I’m afraid the vessels managed to escape from the palace. They followed Sythia and one of them was crushed.”

What? He couldn’t believe it. How did they get out? Thinking, he sighed. It wasn’t very surprising if he thought about it. If they had managed to get out of the Abyss, escaping the palace wouldn’t be a challenge. “Crushed?” He repeated. That didn’t sound good.

“They were killed.” Dryya clarified.

The Pale King felt a brief pang of - surprise? It was something, but it didn’t last long in spite of the headache that was forming. He had sacrificed many of the vessels to create the perfect one, losing another should have no effect. Though he dreaded to think of what that lady beetle would do because of this. “Which one?”

“The one with the crack in their shell.”

Sighing, he replied. “You said she was in the east garden correct?”

-

It would be faster to approach the beetle about this issue himself then have her come to him while he was working and cause a ruckus. Or that’s what he thought. As he approached the garden he could hear the sounds of crying; that was not something he wanted to deal with. Alas, he was already here, and it would be easier to talk to her if she was sad instead of angry. Walking into the garden, he spotted three bugs sitting on a bench. 

The lady beetle had curled into a ball, hugging her legs close to her chest, hiding her face behind her knees. Her body was disturbed with frequent violent sobs and even though her antennae twitched as he approached she didn’t look up. Hornet was seated beside her, she had been rubbing her back but withdrew her hand as she noticed him, she didn’t offer anything in the ways of greetings and returned her gaze to the sobbing bug beside her. The remaining vessel was sitting at her other side. They were looking down at the glaive in their hands with a dark shadow covering their face.

Stopping a few steps away from them, he thought over what he could say that wouldn’t illicit an aggressive reaction. He pondered for a while in silence, being unable to find the right words, when a hoarse, tired voice spoke in his place.

“What do you want?” Sythia’s tone was hostile despite his assumptions that she would be too distraught to summon any anger.

He had personally come to check on her and she lashed out at him. The disrespect made him irritated, but he kept it out of his voice. “I heard of what happened.” 

“And what, you’ve come to make me feel worse? Your face is the last one I want to see right now.” Her own face was tear stained. She sat up, bringing her legs down. Her guard had been raised but the beetle clearly wasn’t going to move from where she sat. 

The Pale King had to try hard to suppress an annoyed sigh, he had expected it might turn out this way. “I have not even said anything yet.”

“I don’t care.” She cried, bringing her hands up to hold the sides of her head. Her breath was coming faster and her eyes widened in distraught. “If we hadn’t come here, this would have never happened. Why did you make us stay?” She lifted her head again, looking directly at him with wide pleading eyes. All anger had left them and they were glazed over, sad and hopeless. “Why did you take them away from me?”

Taken aback by her outburst, he found it hard to formulate a reply. It was true. If he had left them this wouldn’t have turned out as it had, but he didn’t regret that, they had to be kept under supervision. And though that’s what he had told both himself and her, due to the lack of supervision, one had died. It was most certainly somewhat of failure on his part. He surprised himself as a small ‘sorry’ escaped him.

Sythia lifted her head again, eyes widening in surprise. Hornet too looked slightly surprised that he had actually offered an apology. That most certainly wasn’t what he expected he would do when he came here. Clearing his throat, the wyrm turned away. He had nothing more to say and it was clear that the lady beetle was in no shape to talk. Hopefully this would keep her from coming to him about this at a later date.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh yeah, the pain continues. 
> 
> Some more art for you all https://twitter.com/KandySongbird/status/1217527759628636161?s=20


	11. Chapter 11

Rose stood motionless by a large door, tapping the ground with the end of their glaive. They were alone. Pausing for a moment, they raised one of their hands, forming a fist then unclenching it. Aluba would normally hold their hand while they waited. A sound of sudden movement brought Rose's attention to the door. A tall, white armoured bug walked out from it and they looked down at Rose as they halted beside them. The smaller vessel looked back for a moment, then held up their empty hand. The Pure Vessel shifted their stoic stare to the tiny hand that was being presented to them but did nothing more. Rose withdrew it, looking down. The larger sibling started walking forward and Rose padded after them, and even though they had kept looking over in their direction, the Hollow Knight did not cast them another glance. Rose gave up as they neared the main gate of the palace. 

The guards standing at the gate were kingsmoulds and they didn’t so much as look in their direction as they passed. It was always easier to sneak out when they were with the tall vessel. Most bugs were sleeping at this time too, that may have also added to the ease. Rose didn’t like sneaking out of the palace while Sythia was asleep, especially since Aluba had returned to the void. They wished they could have seen Sythia once more before this. But the time was soon, they must do this now. 

The two vessels walked across the moat and immediately swerved off the lit path once they entered the Ancient Basin. There were actual guards here and though they would most likely not question them as long as the Hollow Knight was there, there was a chance they would tell the King if they saw them. Even though the bugs had pale white shells, they could hide quite well in the cloak of darkness, Rose more so than their tall sibling. Their white armour and pale grey cloak stood out more than Rose’s dark blue. They walked some more, Rose occasionally watching as a shadow creeper languidly crawled past. At any other time Rose would run over to it and poke it with the head of their glaive but they didn’t feel very up to that right now. 

After walking across a bridge, they arrived at a part of the basin that was filled with more of the King’s elaborate builds, small in comparison to the palace but white all the same. It was empty now. Perhaps not completely abandoned just yet but infrequently visited. The Pure Vessel walked around the outside of the white walls, coming to a space behind that was well hidden. Rose could see the familiar light of a lumafly lantern and they hurried in front of their sibling to reach it. 

They turned a corner and as they did, three more small bugs were waiting. One with two long horns that both came to an end in two smaller points, another with three curved horns, two long and one short, taller than the other two vessels, and the last, smaller, with two short horns on each side of their head. The sibling with the two long horns turned as Rose approached them, lumafly in hand. They nodded to Rose and Rose nodded back. The Hollow Knight was not far behind. They towered over their much smaller siblings but nodded to the two horned vessel as they saw them. The two horned sibling looked around the newcomers, searching for something, while the other vessels standing behind them also shared a glance. They turned to the Hollow Knight, then to Rose. Rose was still for a moment before shaking their head. The siblings behind the bug holding the lumafly lantern bobbed their heads in surprise while the lantern bearing vessel bowed their own. Rose mimicked the action first then the other vessels followed. 

After a moment, the two horned bug looked back up, staring directly at the Hollow Knight holding out their hand. The taller bug produced something from their cloak. Rose had to turn their head all the way up to see what it was. A small white charm that seemed to glow with life. The Hollow Knight had to bend down for the smaller bug to grab the charm from their hand. They inspected it for a short while before bringing it into their cloak with a small nod. 

-

Sythia sat on the bench in the garden she had found herself straying to more often. Rose had not been there when she had awoken but she supposed the vessel needed their space, they had been close to Aluba as well after all. They had clung less since then, were less peppy. But Sythia couldn’t judge. She herself had not been as carefree as usual. Watching the leaves rustle overhead, she sighed. Even though she wanted to give Rose their space, being alone right now was painful. Once again Hornet had silently sat by her side when she cried. How many times would she look so hopeless in front of her? That said, she was thankful to the little spider, the thought of her eased her mind somewhat. 

It had been a challenge to sit here by herself for so long, trying desperately to keep her thoughts from wandering to places she’d rather they not be. The beetle had come to believe there was no use in lingering on certain things, after all they would only become distant memories at some point. The soul crushing feelings and the horrifying sights would all fade eventually. That is what she hoped for at least, though a part of her wanted to cling to the ache in her chest. It was the last thing Aluba had given her after all. She shook her head as tears threatened to fall. ‘Stop thinking about it.’

The sound of footsteps drew her attention, but she only slightly tilted her head in its direction. A tall knight was looking down on her, dressed elegantly in white and grey robes, with a tangle of antenna sprouting from her head. Slightly startled she sat up, eyeing the bug looming over here.

“Le’mer, you have been much unlike your usual self.” In a thick accent Ze’mer spoke, looking rather worried.

Sythia only hummed in response. She had not spoken to the mysterious knight at all during her stay in the palace. It seemed the knight had been watching her, though it wouldn’t take a genius to guess she wasn’t acting herself. The benches weren’t her usual choice of perch, yet she had lost track of how long she had been sitting here today. At least no one had bothered her. That was until now.

“Che wishes to bestow a delicate gift upon you. A rare bloom, an offering for your dear departed companion.” She held out a grey flower to the smaller bug.

Hesitantly, Sythia looked at the plant through tired eyes. It was a very beautiful flower, the petals looked soft and fragile. She took the delicate thing in her claws and Ze’mer smiled.

“You have che’s deepest consolidations. Che cannot bear the thought of losing one so dear.” 

Sythia twirled the flower in her hand, watching the petals sway softly. The small act of kindness lightened her chest a little. Had she known this tall bug were so nice she may have spent more time trying to get to know her, though the lady beetle had no idea where she went when not on duty. 

“Thank you,” She said, giving Ze’mer a weak smile. 

“A pleasure.” She smiled back, giving her a small wave as she left.

-

The halls of the palace were quiet, and only the echo of her claws on the stone floor rang in Sythia’s mind. Rose and Aluba had never been particularly noisy, only offering two extra sets of footsteps to the ambiance, but it still felt oddly silent. It would do her some good to be around anyone at this point, just to hear other sounds then her noisy thoughts. 

Sythia had not seen what had happened to Aluba’s shell after she had last seen it broken and empty, but she had been told a memorial of sorts had been put in place in one of the palace’s inner rooms. She couldn’t quite recall who had said it to her through the daze she had found herself in lately, but she appreciated it. It came to quite the surprise that there was another bug in the palace that would care enough to do something like this. It didn’t do much to affect the numbness that had taken hold of her recently, but it was nice. 

Coming to an open door, she paused. The smell of candles wafted gently out of the room. They smelled clean and crisp, nothing like the thick heavy candle scent she was used to. Taking a step into the room, she noticed another large bug was standing there, facing away from her, dressed in white with a tangle of roots sprouting from her head. The root didn’t move as Sythia walked up to the small display that sat against the wall of the room. It was decorated rather neatly with tall white candles and in the center sat a small idol carved in the shape of Aluba. It looked messy, and Sythia found some of the details were wrong. Looking at it caused a knot in her chest to form and she had to stop herself from staring too long. Gently, she deposited the flower that had been given to her in front of it, forcing herself to avert her gaze afterwards. 

“One of Ze’mer’s,” The root softly hummed.

“Yeah,” Was Sythia’s only reply.

They stood in silence for a while, with only the soft sound of flickering fire. Sythia tried hard to focus on the flames, watching the wax drip down into the silver candle holders that were keeping them in place.

“A lovely display has been offered to that child. I had come merely to observe but found myself lingering due to the sentiment of it.” 

The lady beetle twitched her antenna in response. There wasn’t much she had to say, choosing instead to keep watching the running wax.

“Those two must have become quite attached to you to have arranged such a thing.”

What? Confused Sythia questioned her statement. “Rose and Aluba?”

The lady shook her head, bringing her clear blue eyes to look deeply into Sythia’s round black ones. “Isma and Ogrim.”

“They did this?” The words came out breathlessly, as she looked thoroughly over the display again.

The root nodded. “Ogrim is not very good with carving, it’s clear he had a hand in that small figure. The candle arrangement too is much like Isma. They are deeply kind, perhaps this was done in an attempt to lift your own spirit.”

Sythia had to fight back the tears that wanted to form as gratitude rippled within her. “They didn’t say anything.”

“Did they not?” The Queen tilted her head.

Maybe they did. Who was it who had told her this was here in the first place? It was fuzzy but she could recall Isma’s soft voice and Ogrim’s jubilant yet comforting tone. She wanted to ask why, but that didn’t particularly matter at this point. She would have to thank them.

“You should not linger too long on the loss of that child. They had died before, I’m sure that emptiness within them lives on.” 

What? Sythia was confused again. What did that even mean? She looked at the White Lady with what she assumed was wild bewilderment for the larger bug blinked as she saw her face. 

“I was told by Dryya that something strange had emerged from their broken shell. It is no surprise; that void within them cannot truly be destroyed.” 

“What are you talking about?” Her voice had not had so much emotion in it in a while, but the Queen was saying some very interesting things. Sythia had thought she had seen something rise from Aluba’s shell, but she had written it off as a delirious hallucination. Dryya had seen it too? 

The White Lady thought for some time. “Yes, I suppose it would do no harm to inform you of their true nature. You do not seem the type to talk of other’s secrets.”

The beetle’s breath caught in her throat. This seemed important.

“You see, the vessels are a construct of sorts, an organic shell, hollowed and filled with emptiness.”

Sythia didn’t know if she was stupid but that didn’t make any sense to her at all. Rose and Aluba were empty? Pondering on it, it somewhat made things clear. They were ‘hollow’. She guessed that would explain their stoic stares. But that wasn’t entirely true. Those small bugs were filled with personality, despite their inherent emptiness. It really didn’t make sense, but she didn’t think it’d do much more for her tired thoughts to think about it. There was one thing. ‘A construct.’ They had been created that way. “Why?” She asked.

The root blinked again, this time looking away. Now that was something Sythia found she wouldn’t share. She sighed, not having the energy to try a pry an answer from the large root. At least she knew more about the vessels, kind of.

After a while, the White Lady left and Sythia was once more on her own. She stood there looking down at the little idol of Aluba that Ogrim had crafted. It was clearly made of some sort of pale grey clay, much different to the white stone most bugs would create idols out of, softer and easier to mould and carve. The horns were uneven and the eyes slightly out of place. Sythia smiled as she looked at it, thinking of how the dung beetle would have struggled to place the smaller details with his large claws. The candles had melted away half of the wax before Sythia realised how much time had passed. Then what the Queen had said came back to her. Perhaps it was time to find out where Rose was hiding. 

Sythia promptly exited the room, walking at a much faster pace than she had recently done. It was her usual speed and at her usual alertness. Having something to do drove her forward with a sense of purpose. That being said, she had no idea where Rose could be. In Greenpath, the vessel had certain places they would go on their own, but in the palace, the little bug had rarely left her side and she knew she would most certainly look strange poking in and out of different rooms. Sythia found herself stumped before she could even begin looking, but that wouldn’t stop her. She would find the little menace if it killed her, not that she imagined it would. 

Swiftly skirting a corner, she staggered as another bug almost bumped into her, finding she had to spin out of their way to avoid the collision. How long had it been since she had moved like that? Probably not very long, but it had felt like forever and it made her feel somewhat giddy. The bug she had almost bumped into was a sight for sore eyes and she found herself walking right up to her, grabbing her hands from underneath her soft burgundy cloak. 

“Hornet.” She smiled.

The spider paused for a moment, surprised. “You seem to be doing better.”

Letting go, Sythia realised the last time the princess had seen her, she had been so upset that she couldn’t even will herself to speak to her. “Only a little.” The smile died from her face a little, but she shook her head. Staying in that mindset wasn’t going to help anyone. “You wouldn’t have seen Rose around?”

Hornet shook her head. “You don’t know where they are?”

“They wandered off while I wasn’t looking, I didn’t have the energy to search for them,” The beetle admitted.

“I see that you do now. Very well, I will help you.”

“Really?” 

“It is my current job to make sure you do not get into too much trouble.”

Smiling again, Sythia nodded. “Thank you.”

-

The two bugs searched around the palace for a while but had found no sign of the small vessel. The optimistic mood Sythia had managed to work herself into was beginning to fade and they had decided to take a small break. The lady beetle had taken to pacing up and down. Hornet was leaning against the railings of a hall that overlooked a large empty room, watching Sythia as did so. They had searched most of the places that Sythia felt Rose would be likely to be, but to no avail. She had begun to worry they had somehow snuck out of the palace again. But where would they have gone? Back to Greenpath maybe, but why would they leave without her? That had been the only reason the small bug had escaped before. At least that’s what she thought. 

“I did not suggest we take a break so you could wear yourself down walking around nervously like that.” Hornet sounded serious, and she tilted her head to the free space to her left. Sythia reluctantly went to lean beside her.

“Why can’t we find them? There’s only so many places they can be.” That had come across more desperately than she intended.

Hornet only hummed in response.

“You don’t think something happened to them?” 

“It is a possibility.”

Not the response she was looking for right now. “Hornet.”

The spider looked at her sternly. “Do you want me to lie to you?”

‘I want you to make me feel better’, is what she wanted to say but there was no use in that. She knew the little bug better than that, Hornet didn’t honey coat her words. Groaning, she rubbed her face with her hands. “No.”

After a while of holding her face in her claws, she felt a small hand grab her wrist and pulling her arm down. “I'm going to change the subject, you should think of something else.”

Oh? Was she actually trying to make her feel better? Sythia didn’t really want to think of anything else at the moment but she complied, bringing her other hand away from her face and leaning further back onto the rails. “Okay.”

“That time in the city, when we ran into that bug you claimed you knew. Would you care to explain?”

Hornet had remembered that? Any thought that she had wanted to make her feel better escaped the lady beetle. That was one of the last things she wanted to think of, but she had told the spider she would explain later, not that she really knew where to start.

“That bug, she was my sister. We didn’t get along very well, or at least I couldn’t stand the way she carried herself.”

“That noble bug?” Hornet questioned.

Sythia smiled slightly. “Surprising, right? I used to be one myself. It was the worst.”

“So what?”

“So I left.”

Hornet didn’t seem convinced. “Is that all?”

Sythia closed her eyes, pulling a rather uncomfortable face. “Not really.” Hornet gripped her wrist tighter and it occurred to Sythia that she had not let go since she had grabbed it. “Do you really want to know?”

“Yes.”

Contemplating on the best way to say this, Sythia took a deep breath, letting it out slowly. “I had another sister. Her name was Minn, she was small and cute. A lot like me I would say.”

Hornet chuckled. “You’re small and cute?”

Despite the unfavourable topic, Sythia found herself smiling. “That’s not what I meant. She liked to break the rules, though maybe that was because of my influence. She wasn’t very strong though, Minn was only a child after all. She started complaining about having unsettling dreams at some point. I did my best to comfort her but I thought that they were just dreams. I thought they couldn’t hurt her.”

Sythia paused as her next words got caught in her throat. It had been a long time but thinking of it still stung. Taking another deep breath she continued. “I found her one day, smashing a couple of vases. I called out to her, asking what was wrong but she didn’t reply. When I tried to stop her she bit me, really hard. I didn’t know what was wrong with her until I took a proper look at her eyes.” She could feel tears welling up again, but she willed them down. She would not cry again. “I don’t really remember what happened next. Faulen had seen us and she called one of our personal guards. I’m pretty sure I begged her not to. You know, most infected bugs are killed on the spot. There’s not much anyone can do for them once they become aggressive.”

“Sythia-” Hornet began, but the lady beetle wasn’t done.

“When I first met Aluba and Rose, they reminded me so much of Minn. I thought that this time I would be able to properly look after them.” Looking down at her hands she frowned. “I’m just as useless now as I was back then.”

A huff from the spider brought her gaze back up. “Well you certainly are a fool.”

Sythia blinked. “What?” That was uncalled for. 

“Do you really blame yourself for that?”

“I didn’t say-”

“It certainly sounds like that's what you are saying.”

The taller bug withdrew her arm from Hornet’s grip. “I could have saved them.”

“Did you not just say there is nothing you can do for an infected bug?” The spider’s tone was becoming firmer.

“I mean, I-” Sythia shook her head. “I could have saved Aluba.”

“Could you?”

Sythia thought. The infected garpede had immediately targeted the vessels as they had entered the room. She had gone to them as soon as she noticed they were there. Aluba couldn’t defend themself well, and she couldn’t fight with a trembling bug in her arms. There was no certainty that if she had moved the small bug out of the way, the infected beast would not just target them again. But still, there must have been a way. What should she have done differently? If she had been paying more attention. If she hadn’t let go. 

“I don’t know.”

Hornet softened her voice. “There is no use dwelling on what you could have done. What’s done is done and you cannot change that.”

“I know.” Sythia sighed. She couldn’t tell if this was making her feel better or worse.

Sythia twitched her antennae. The spider was telling her things she already knew; things she had worked out a long time ago. But hearing it from someone else helped. Pushing herself up she looked at Hornet, grabbing her hand in her own. 

“Let’s keep looking.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Gosh, I'm sorry this is so late. 
> 
> This is probably one of my favourite chapters so I really hope you enjoyed it!


	12. Chapter 12

“I apologise my King, but they were not there either.”

Narrowing his eyes, the Pale King sighed. He had not seen the Hollow Knight at the post they should have been at and after having both the guards and royal retainers search the palace, the vessel was still nowhere to be seen.

Irritated he waved the palace guard away. “Keep looking. It cannot be that hard to find a bug of their size.” 

The guard bowed nervously and hurried away. 

The wyrm found himself bringing his hand to his forehead, rubbing it between his fingers. How could he have lost a bug that big and obedient? He had wanted to speak with the vessel once more before they were sealed away. The dreamers had been informed of the black egg’s completion. Everything had been going exactly as he had planned, except now he could not locate the whereabouts of the center of that plan. Without the Hollow Knight, Hallownest would be destined for destruction. Sighing again, he rose from his throne and hastily made his way out of the throne room. Sitting here would do him no good, he needed to inform his knights of the situation and attempt to search for the vessel himself. It was an important enough matter to do so. 

As he walked past the door he waved to one of the guards standing there. “Summon the great knights to the southern conference room.”

“Yes, my King.” They bowed and set about their task.

The Pale King continued onward, heading to the room his knights would soon be gathering in. With the combined effort of all of them, it shouldn’t take long to find them. Though it was certainly unusual. The Hollow Knight never acted on their own accord, someone must have given them an incorrect order. Even so, that still didn’t explain why they didn’t seem to be anywhere in the palace. Did the guards check the front courtyard? Even the pathway from the city elevator through the Ancient Basin was a possibility.

“Let’s look by east garden again.” The voice brought the wyrm out of his thoughts.

“We've looked there three times already.”

“Doesn’t hurt to be thorough.” 

He stumbled back as a flying bug almost crashed into him. She had only noticed he was there at the last moment and swerved to fly over him. That red and black shell could only belong to one bug. The three bugs were silent for a moment before he heard a small “Whoops.” from where the lady beetle was still buzzing behind him.

Hornet hurried over to her, pulling her to the ground by her arm. “Can you ever watch where you are going?” She hissed to the other bug.

The King turned to look at them, and the lady beetle jumped slightly as she saw his face. He must have not been able to keep his calm disposition, the current situation was quite stressful after all.

“Sorry, I’ll be more careful,” She managed.

He had sworn that she had just been mourning the loss of one of her vessels. Why was she running around the palace with so much energy now? That being said, he couldn’t see the other vessel she should have had with her. A bad feeling rose in his chest. 

“Where is your vessel?”

Sythia tensed and looked to Hornet. His daughter shook her head and his thought was more or less confirmed. “I don’t know?”

Why had she phrased that as a question? This bug had no idea where her vessel was. Something was most certainly not right. “You two, follow me.”

The lady beetle looked confused but he didn’t wait for her to catch on. He began to walk and heard a brief gasp from the winged bug as Hornet had to pull her by the arm to get her moving. 

-

The knights had already been waiting in the room when the Pale King arrived. They were muttering quietly among themselves and he guessed they had already figured out why he had summoned them. He caught Dryya glaring as she saw the lady beetle walk in behind him but she didn’t say anything. Walking around the knights, he took his place at the head of the table while Hornet and Sythia remained at the other end.

“I suppose you know why I called you here,” He began.

“It doesn’t make any sense, my King.” Hegemol placed a claw on the table. “The Hollow Knight should not do anything without direct orders from you.”

“Indeed, that is why I called you here. When was the last time any of you saw them?” 

The knights shared thoughtful looks, but didn’t say anything. Sighing, the King turned his attention to Sythia.

“When did you last see your vessel?”

“Yesterday, before I went to sleep.” Her reply was immediate.

“Rose is missing too?” Isma asked, bringing a hand to her face. 

Dryya huffed “Your vessel wouldn’t have done something to the Hollow Knight?”

The lady beetle frowned angrily at Dryya. “Seriously? Have you seen how small they are in comparison? What could they have possibly done?”

“Size isn’t everything,” She challenged.

Slamming her hands against the table, she growled. “Rose didn’t do anything.”

“Enough!” The King yelled, drawing the two bugs’ attention. The lady beetle may not be moping around anymore, but her mood had not returned to its usual carefree. She was still on edge and it would do his stress levels wonders to keep her from getting too irritated.

Standing back, she crossed her arms and Hornet placed a hand on one of them, whispering something to her that made her expression soften.

“What should we do, my King?” Ogrim asked, trying to move the conversation forward.

He had to think for a moment. The retainers and guards had already searched most of the palace. It would cause quite a large commotion if he were to send all of his knights out to look in the basin. The best thing to do would be to send two to look there and keep the rest searching in the palace. Looking over to the lady beetle, he thought. She would most likely search quite thoroughly to find her own vessel and it was likely that the two would be together. She was very fast too. If he sent her into the basin along with one of his knights, the whole area would most likely be checked to perfection. Dryya would not like that though. It would ease her thoughts if he sent the two of them together but their clear dislike for each other would most likely get in the way. Hegemol or Ze’mer would be a better choice.

“My King!” A winged sentry burst into the room, heaving heavy breaths. “I humbly apologise for interrupting, but there has been news of activity at the black egg.”

“What?” That was impossible, the whole area was ordered to be under strict guard until the Hollow Knight was sealed.

“Apparently a group of five bugs defeated the guards standing watch. One of them was believed to be the Hollow Knight, my King,” They managed through their shortness of breath.

Five bugs? What was the meaning of this? The dreamers had not been put in place yet. The Hollow Knight should not have made their own way to the black egg. There was no time to think this over. Waving his arm he addressed all the knights in the room. “We are going to the Crossroads immediately!”

-

The Pale King had paid little attention to the awed gasps of the bugs they had passed on the way to the Crossroads. They had tried hard to keep away from busy places but the entire Crossroads was filled with activity, and while it was easy enough to pass through with bugs moving out of the way, he knew this would cause unrest within the common bugs of Hallownest after this ordeal was over. It hadn’t taken very long to make his way to the black egg, but every moment felt like forever. Whatever happened now could potentially doom the bugs of Hallownest to the fate of a hive mind and he would not allow that to happen to the kingdom he had created. 

As they approached the temple, he spotted a fuzzy purple bug standing outside, beside her were two vessels. Not the two he was looking for. They were unfamiliar. Just how many of them got out of the Abyss?

Dryya dashed ahead of them, rushing right up to the small moth, lance pointed directly at them. “What is the meaning of this?”

The moth didn’t flinch away from the weapon. Instead of answering the three horned knight, she looked towards the Pale King as he reached the temple entrance with the rest of his knights. “King, you do not think we moths know of the root of this plague. It may be true, most of us have forgotten, but not me. I thought it would be beyond me to stop what our disloyalty has brought about, but a wielder appeared before me. With their power, Radiance can be stopped.”

“What?” He heard Sythia blurt out. That knight was the only one here who did not know the reasons the vessels had been created. Even among his own knights, he had only told Hegemol of the true nature of the infection.

“This is foolish, moth. I don’t know what you are trying to accomplish, but do not interfere with what I have in place.”

The moth shook her head. “This was not my plan, and though I feel responsible for the state of the kingdom, it was your own creations who have decided this.”

His head was spinning. “How do you know of the vessels?”

“I am a moth, am I not? I have seen the dreams of the wielder. I know of what they are.”

This was insane. Not only had the vessels escaped, they had convinced this moth to aid them in whatever uncalculated plan they had created, and they had even managed to get his Pure Vessel to join them. This was why the impure ones had to be sealed away. This was why he had cast them into the depths of the Abyss. And yet he had failed. All the sacrifice was for nothing.

“Where are the other vessels?” He had to stop this. He had to try.

“It is too late now. They have entered that void prison. You would not last long in there.” The moth turned away from him, looking towards the temple.

“My King,” Hegemol moved to his side. “What should we do?”

The Pale King shook his head. He didn’t know. He could not send any of his knights after them, the black egg would eat away at their soul. Killing the moth would not solve anything. With a signal from his hand, Dryya stood down, moving away from the moth. Even so there must still be a way to correct this. 

Anything.

Perhaps sending a knight after them was not an impossible idea.

Before he could pull his thoughts together one vessel ran out from inside the temple and to the King’s relief, it was one he recognised, but not the one he wanted to see. The five horned vessel looked surprised to see the large audience that had gathered.

“Rose!” The lady beetle ran out in front of him, heading right towards the vessel. “What in the name of Hallownest are you doing? What’s going on?”

The wyrm could not believe what he saw. As Sythia had approached the vessel, they held out their glaive, pointing it directly at the bewildered beetle. She froze in place. The gaze of those empty eyes were not friendly. How could that vessel have turned against the bug he had watched them cling to? What would he do if the Hollow Knight turned against him?

-

“Rose.” The name escaped her quietly. Everything that had just happened was sending her head spinning. She had no idea what was going on at all but when she had laid her eyes on the familiar bug she had never felt so relieved. They were safe. They were here. They were threatening her with no friendliness in their cold stare. 

Swallowing she took a step forward. “What is this, Rose? Why did you leave? What is this place?”

Rose did not waver, lowering their stance as she got closer. Sythia wouldn’t back down. She was confused and tired and wanted to forget all this was happening but she was here now and she was getting the answers she had been looking for since the moment she had met Rose if it was going to kill her. 

“Stop this. Just tell me what’s going on. I just want to help you.”

With those words Rose lunged forward, slashing down right in front of her feet with force that cracked the stones paving the ground. Was that a warning? Looking back to the vessel’s face, her breath caught in her chest. Their eyes had softened. With a small whip of their head, they stood signalling with their glaive for Sythia to back away. She didn’t understand. Rose wasn’t going to attack her, but they were telling her to keep her distance. She wouldn’t. She had looked so hard for them and she wasn’t just going to leave them here. But she also wasn’t going to get any answers from the small bug.

She whipped around to face the Pale King. “What is this? What is happening here?”

He seemed surprised that she had turned on him. His surprise was only momentary and his gaze darkened. “It does not concern you.”

Oh, absolutely not. She felt her blood chill in rage. “Are you kidding me?” She was not letting this bug keep her in the dark any longer. “You forced Rose and Aluba to stay in the palace. You don’t even make sure they’re well supervised. And now you won’t even tell me what is going on! Do I look like some kind of fool to you?”

The white crowned bug blinked and for once none of the knights said anything to address her disrespect. She was getting her answers and she was getting them now.

His face darkened as he saw the challenge in hers. “I created the vessels to seal away the infection. They had to be perfectly hollow, void of thought and feeling. They were to be sealed away here, within the black egg.”

“Why are there so many of them? Why did I find Rose and Aluba abandoned?”

“They were impure, unusable. I had cast them away. I did not expect them to get out.”

Sythia could not believe what she was hearing. “You just threw them away?” A knot was forming, she couldn’t breathe. “Who does that!?”

The King’s face resolved, looking at her firm and resolute. “There was no cost too great.”

The lady beetle shook her head, backing away from the other bugs. Hornet moved towards her, reaching out. As she noticed, she pulled away from her. “Did you know?” The spider’s eyes widened. She looked at the other knights. “Did you all know?”

They shared nervous glances. Ogrim muttered, looking quite ashamed. “We did not know there was more than one.”

“But you found out when you saw Rose and Aluba. Why did you hide it from me?” It was getting so hard to breathe, she wanted to scream.

“It was not our place to say.” Hornet had successfully grabbed her arm this time, looking directly at her with dark eyes. “You need to calm down, being mad won’t change anything.”

Blinking, she breathed. This was so wrong. It made her feel horrible. How many more innocent bugs had been thrown away like they were nothing? Hornet was right despite that. Being angry wasn’t helping. There was still one thing she was confused about. Who was Radiance?

An aggressive tremor shook the ground. Hornet gripped her arm tighter as the two bugs were thrown off balance.

“What was that?” The spider questioned.

“I don’t know,” She wailed over the sound of shaking stone.

The shaking ground only got more aggressive. Sythia had to widen her stance considerably to stay standing. She winced as stalactite fell from the roof of the cavern around them. Sparing a glance at the other knights, she found Hegemol had moved forward to shield the King from the falling debris and the others were also bracing themselves as the ground shook.

A sudden piercing cry erupted from the temple and the front of it was blown away in an eruption of bright golden light. Sythia had to duck down completely as chunks of the old shell that had made up the temple and a strange black rock were shot past her. As she attempted to open her eyes, they were met with a radiant light. It was blinding and she had to squint to see what was going on. Rose and the other vessels were now facing the source of the light, weapons bared. Beneath the light was another two vessels, one small with two long horns, holding a small nail and the other she recognised as the Hollow Knight though their armour had been broken off and they were lying on the floor, a large crack running down the center of their shell.

If she wasn’t currently being blinded, her eyes would have widened. Hovering above was a bug she had never seen before. Enormous and radiant, flying on golden wings, head adorned with a crown of horns. Sythia thought her heart would stop as she recognised the orange glow that burned in their eyes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That feeling when your carefully thought out plan backfires because your children have a will.


	13. Chapter 13

Sythia instinctively reached for her scythes, still trying to adjust to the sudden increase in light intensity. It was incredibly hard to look at this being. Blinking twice, she took a deep breath and straightened her posture. Though the light was much brighter than anything she had ever seen, the unsettling orange glow was nothing new and it sat heavy in the pit of her stomach. Seal away the infection? You must be joking, how do you seal away something like this?

Sharply turning her gaze to the Pale King, the bright figure bristled with rage. With an enraged roar, multiple glowing nails materialised around her and were fired in his direction. All of the knights rushed to his side, Hegemol attempting to swat one away with his mace, stumbling back as the force of its projection nullified his attempts. With a flash of the King’s own white light, the golden nails were stopped in their tracks and clattered to the ground, evaporating into golden specs.

“WYRM!” The radiant being bellowed in a harmonious sort of voice, now turning her full attention to the pale bug.

Attacking again, she summoned a ball of spiraling light, shooting it once more at the King. He braced himself, readying another defense when a shadow dashed through the golden projectile, scattering the light. From the shadow emerged the two horned vessel. They didn’t spare a glance to the Pale King, running right towards the shining being, nail bared. 

Sythia blinked, bewildered. She had to do something. Just standing here watching was driving her crazy. 

“My King,” Dryya shouted, not tearing her gaze away from the glowing threat. “What are your orders?”

He didn’t hesitate. “We must destroy her!”

With those words, the Radiance let out another furious cry. “I WILL NOT BE FORGOTTEN!” From her face, beams of searing hot light erupted, scattering around the cavern, making more rock and stone fall from the ceiling. Sythia had to sharply move to the right to avoid being seared, gasping as she bumped into Hornet. 

“Radiance, stop this!” The purple moth yelled over the sound of echoing light, but the enraged being paid no heed to her pleas.

Sythia scanned the room. Where had Rose gone? After not a moment of searching, she spotted them. They had situated themselves on the far right of the cavern and were digging the head of their glaive into the ground. They weren’t trying to fight, that wasn’t right. The lady beetle moved before she could think. This was chaos but she wouldn’t let Rose get hurt. While the glowing beast was focused on the Pale King, she could make it to the small bug.

Or that’s what she hoped. As she was running towards them, a glowing barrier appeared around them, springing up in an intricate white pattern, sealing away half of the cavern from her reach. Slamming into the newly formed barrier, she smacked the end of her scythes into it, in a vain attempt to get through, noticing the end of one of them was still chipped. She had been sealed out.

“What’s the meaning of this?” She heard Hegemol call out. 

Turning she saw that on the other end, a small four horned vessel had done the same, and the seal they had created spanned the entire length of the cavern, blocking the King and his knights from the Radiance and the vessels.

“We’ve been sealed out.” Isma gasped.

“My, they intend to fight alone!” Ze’mer cried out.

Exasperated, Sythia looked back towards the vessels. The Radiance had become even more furious at being cut off from her target and was firing glowing nails in fast succession, aiming directly for the vessels. There were five of them, but only two were fighting. Rose and the other vessel that had brought up the barrier were standing in place, struggling to hold up the glowing wall in place. The Hollow Knight had not gotten up from where they were lying in the wreckage of the temple. Only the two horned vessel was truly focused on the dazzling being; the other three horned bug was occupied in keeping attacks away from the vessels who couldn’t defend themselves. Could they really win like this?

She shook her head, there must be something they could do. Running over to the Pale King, she wanted to shake some sense into him, but she refrained. “Can’t you break this seal?”

He looked at her, wide eyed and stressed. “Perhaps it would be better to let the vessels fight. They were created to oppose the light.”

She let out an audible groan. They were going to get themselves killed. Ogrim stepped forward. “My King, I think it would be wiser to aid the vessels. Such a foe should be faced together.”

At this, the King whipped his head around to glare at the dung beetle and the larger knight flinched. “Do not question me, Ogrim!”

Giving up with reasoning with the King, Sythia turned to Hornet. She was watching the vessel fighting the Radiance. The small two horned bug was expertly weaving through the glowing assault. Ducking under beams of light, leading spinning golden orbs into the ground and slipping between rows of nails. Despite the turmoil storming in her stomach, she had to admit no movement of the small vessel was wasted yet the constant barrage of attacks from the Radiance was keeping them at bay, preventing them from getting close enough to attack. Sythia held her breath as the little bug dashed through one glowing orb, only to collide with another, sending them flying back. They needed help and the King was just standing there with five perfectly capable knights doing absolutely nothing.

“Hornet, what do we do?” Her mind was fuzzy and she couldn’t think straight.

The spider blinked at her slowly. She looked calm at first glance but her posture was tense and her eyes slightly furrowed. “We wait.”

Wait for what? For the vessels to be killed? This was eating at her, she couldn’t just stand here. Something. Anything. There must be something she could do. The bright light and rumbling stone were giving her a headache.

“Sythia, even if we were able to help, what could you do with your broken weapons?”

The lady beetle drew her gaze from the spider to her scythes. It was true the tip of one of them had shattered, but that didn’t matter, she could just use the other end. Looking closer at the other one, she saw that the blade had been cracked. When had that happened? They were lightweight weapons, perfect for her fighting style, but another heavy impact might destroy them, making them completely useless. Like that was going to stop her.

“I can still fight with them like this.” She insisted.

“And get yourself killed?” Hornet was raising her voice.

Sythia didn’t reply. It was true that if she wasn’t careful, that light would burn the shell from her body. But she looked at Rose, still standing firm, holding up that barrier, shielding them from the blinding light. If she had told Hornet she was fine with that, the spider would probably tie her to a rock with silk to stop her from moving.

“Radiance, please!” A cry from a large section of blown off shell beside them drew their attention. The purple moth was looking directly at the furious light from the top of it, trying to draw her attention. “You do not have to do this. It is the fault of us moths that you were forgotten. We betrayed you, do not make all of these bugs pay for our mistake!” The Radiance once more ignored the moth’s cry. 

Shaking her head in an attempt to clear her mind, Sythia took a deep breath. When the opportunity arises, that’s when she can help. She didn’t care what that King thought, she didn’t care if she was scorched from this existence. She couldn’t let anything happen to Rose.

Shattering echoed harshly through the cavern, drowning out the sound of fighting. Horror erupted in her chest as she watched the barrier dissolve in streaks of golden light while the two vessels who had been holding it in place were blown back. She swore her heart stopped as she watched Rose tumble back from the force. The golden nail that had disrupted their focus shot right through their cloak, pinning them to the ground. Her legs were frozen in place. Rose didn’t move to get up or struggle to rip their pinned cloak free. They just lay there stunned. The building sound of gathering light spurred her muscles into instinctive movement. She could see the light gathering around Rose. They were going to be hit. This time. This time for sure she could protect them.

Sythia barely heard Hornet call her name as she rushed forward. The world spun familiarly around her as every sound in the cavern seemed to amplify in her head. Within a second, she found herself holding the pinned vessel tightly to her chest. Shutting the shell covering her wings as tight as she could she curled herself around Rose bracing herself for the coming impact. It felt like a moment while feeling like an eternity. Then the only thing she could hear was the screaming of light around her. Even though she had shut her eyes, her vision lit up a searing orange and the breath was aggressively pushed from her lungs. Then it was over. She could only hear buzzing.

-

Rose opened their eyes. It was dark. They could have sworn they had just been fighting the Radiance, it shouldn’t be dark. They struggled to move but something was holding them down. Wiggling around some more, the weight shifted, sliding off to one side, revealing the light bathed cavern. They could see their siblings, they were all fighting now. They remembered, the barrier had been broken and they had been knocked away. Looking down, something dark stirred within them. Sythia was lying there and she wasn't moving. Reaching for her, they shook the beetle, she was a light sleeper, that would wake her up. She didn’t stir. How did this happen? They were sure they had made sure she would keep her distance. 

More. 

They just needed to shake her some more. Rose jumped as a beam of light materialised in front of them, just missing the bug lying on the floor before them. Grabbing her, they tried their best to move her backwards, somewhere she would be out of the Radiance’s fire. Jolting to a halt, they realised their cloak had been caught by a glowing nail. With a violent tug and a tear of material, they freed themself, causing the nail to topple over and fade with a flash of yellow light. 

Sythia was heavy, she was more than twice their size after all. It would be nearly impossible to get her somewhere safe while staying clear of the battle. A sudden shadow was cast over them, blocking the bright light. Turning around, they saw Hornet. She looked worried, and then relieved. The spider reached down, pulling Sythia up and out of Rose’s grip, supporting her weight over her shoulder.

Rose reached up as Sythia was pulled away from them, flinching as they saw the red cloaked bugs glare. She was mad. “Finish what you have started, ghost,” Was all she said before she carried their unconscious friend away.

They hesitated for a moment, scanning the cavern for their glaive. Rose spotted the Pale King and the other knights, standing back, out of reach of the Radiance’s attack. Even though the barrier was down, they were not helping. Shaking their head, they continued to look for the lost weapon. It didn’t matter if they didn’t help, the vessels could do this without them.

Spotting their glaive, they set off towards it. Running forward, Rose aimed right for where their weapon was lying, jumping over a glowing orb that swerved into their path, using the debris scattered around the floor to stay out of sight. Grabbing their glaive, the small bug turned to where the other vessels were still fighting. Their four horned siblings had also been blown away, but were now back on their feet, fighting beside their larger three horned sibling. Briskly, walking over to them, being careful to avoid stray light, Rose took a position next to their two horned sibling. The sibling nodded briefly, acknowledging their presence, then signaling with their nail to the right of the Radiance. Complying, Rose ran around to the being's right side, noticing that their sibling had positioned them so the light was surrounded completely by the vessels. The Radiance let out a frustrated cry, firing off three rounds of blazing light, attempting to scatter them. Holding their ground, Rose clutched their glaive tightly. In such a closed space, she couldn’t fight them all off at once.

-

“Sythia,” She heard, blinking her eyes open.

Everything was golden, but it was soft and soothing and warm. The breath that had been knocked from her lungs had returned lighter then she thought it could ever be. Sythia looked around. This place was all empty sky and soft wispy fog. Attempting to move, she found she couldn’t. Her legs were rooted to the ground and she was stuck sitting there on cool brown stone.

“Sythia,” The voice said again. It was soft and smooth. Familiar to the extent that it made her want to cry.

Looking to the right, she saw a tiny glowing figure. “Minn?”

The figure smiled, despite Sythia not being able to see their face through its soft glow. Had she actually died? Looking at her hands, she found they were normal. Not glowing like the dream that stood before her. Was she dreaming? She had never had a dream that felt so real.

“Sythia,” It said again. Turning, she found the little light was gone and she was alone again. Where did it go? Frantically looking around, she winced as the voice calling her name echoed in her mind.

“Sythia!” It was getting louder.

“SYTHIA!”

The lady beetle’s eyes flew open and she shot up from where she was lying. The warm orange skies had disappeared and she found herself back at the ruined temple, sheltered behind a mass of broken shell. The space around her lit up a burning golden as she heard the uncomfortable sound of light being shot. Pain seared through her body as she sat up, and she reflexively recoiled into a ball.

“What-” Her voice caught in her throat as she coughed. Regaining her breath, she looked around. Hornet was kneeling down beside her, her needle in one hand. She looked incredibly angry.

“What were you trying to do?” She hissed, swatting away a falling rock. 

She didn’t bother answering that. “Where’s Rose?”

The spider looked taken aback that she had ignored her question but only sighed, gesturing over their makeshift shelter. Sythia peeked out. The vessels were now all fighting against the Radiance, she looked overwhelmed as the four small bugs attacked her at once. Rose was running around, looking full of energy despite a section of their cloak being torn. Scanning around again, she saw the King was still hanging back, refusing to aid the vessels. The knights were sharing uncomfortable glances, tense on their heels. Without an order from the King they weren’t going to do anything. Huffing, she moved back behind the shell, gripping her left side as she breathed out painfully. If they weren’t going to help, she would. 

Shakily, she tried to pull herself up, but Hornet grabbed her arm and tugged her back down. “Where are you going?”

“Do you expect me to just sit here?” She groaned through the pain throbbing in her shell. What exactly had been hit? Everything hurt.

“If you go out there you'll just be in the way. Do you really have that much of a death wish?” She tightened her grip and Sythia winced as pain seared through her arm.

Turning her head away from her stern glare she let out another shaky breath. She couldn’t move very well through the pain and her mind was still fuzzy. But she didn’t want to just sit here. It was frustrating, humiliating. Even though Rose could use her help here, she couldn’t do anything.

Hornet continued. “If you really want to help that vessel, you will stay here. They worry about you too. Just stay out of their way, that is what they wanted you to do in the first place.”

Sighing, Sythia relaxed. Rose did force her away from them when she had tried to help initially. They really didn’t want her to help, she would know if they did. What good would it do for the small bug if she were to run out there in this state and get herself killed? Her own futility still burned in her chest despite the reality.

The spider loosened her grip on Sythia as she noticed her relax. Her expression softened. “You already helped that ghost as much as you could.”

Through a tightened throat and a painful suppressed sob, Sythia muttered quietly. “I know.”


	14. Chapter 14

Peering out from behind where she had taken shelter, Sythia watched intently as the vessels weaved around the Radiance’s attacks. As the Radiance focused an orb or nail on one pair of vessels, the other two would strike from behind. The lady beetle could see her rage building and her attacks becoming more frantic and sloppy as she was overwhelmed. Behind their battle, the Hollow Knight still lay motionless among rubble and dust. What had happened to them? The purple moth had not stopped attempting to reason with the blinding light, but it was yielding no results. The enraged being was focusing all her attention on the small bugs attacking her and Sythia didn’t even know if she had realised the small moth was there at all.

The pain that had gripped her body had begun to numb and she could stand without staggering. A part of her still wanted to run out and help the vessels in any way she could, but they had worked themselves into a steady rhythm and didn’t seem to need an extra bug getting in their way. Plus, if she tried to run out now, she was sure Hornet wouldn’t hesitate to knock her unconscious again to ensure she stayed put. She wasn’t sure if the spider was worried for her safety or plain fed up with her recklessness, but she appreciated her dedication to making sure she didn’t end up dead.

Even though it was clear that the vessels were pushing the Radiance into a corner, every time she watched Rose run face first into a beam of light, or miscalculate a jump and collide with a radiant nail, her breath caught in her throat. She had never been so tense in her life. A stray glowing orb crashed into the shell she was peeking out behind. The light from its explosion caused her to stumble back and Hornet grabbed her shoulders, steadying her. Providing a quick thanks, she scrambled back to continue watching. Her eyes had adjusted to the light now and even though she had calmed considerably from her previous frantic behaviour, nerves were still wriggling deep in her stomach like a small colony of grubs. 

The Radiance let out another frustrated cry, producing another round of thick searing light beams. All the vessels scrambled back, trying to stay in places that were untouched by the light but the two horned vessel weaved between the pillars of disappearing and reappearing light. Sythia expected to see them strike at the radiant bug with their nail, but instead they jumped up slightly, directly underneath the body of the light. The beetle’s eyes widened as she watched the vessel’s body become cloaked in a black shadow and contort, tendrils breaking out from their back. Above them a mass of black and white energy formed with an ear splitting shriek, consuming the Radiance, making her stumble back. It lasted only a moment, before the vessel returned to normal and dashed out of the way.

Staggering, the Radiance fell from where she had been hovering, collapsing to the ground below with a dull thud. Sythia couldn’t stop herself from running out into the open. Hornet didn’t stop her but followed close behind, watching intently. Walking back, the two horned vessel paused and the lady beetle jumped as the scattered jet black rock that had been blown out of the temple before began to burst out of their solid form. Rapidly, it wormed to where the large bug was lying, restricting her with dark tendrils. The glowing being began to fight back, struggling to free herself, when the purple moth approached her, looking up at the fallen light with round eyes.

“Light,” The moth began, this time drawing the attention of the Radiance. “please cease this. Is the suffering of an entire kingdom what you want?”

She was silent for a moment before her eyes flared in anger, “The Wyrm shall know the same suffering as mine. My light will prevail! I will not be forgotten!”

“It was the choice of us moths to forget you, to seal you deep within our dreams. Those empty children, the bugs of Hallownest, did nothing to wrong you.”

With an angered growl, she attempted to break free of her bindings, but as she struggled, the tendrils tightened around her, forcing her closer to the ground. “The void is an old foe, but I shall not be consumed. The bugs of this kingdom shall know me, they shall revere me! I am the only light that will shine!”

Fear rose in Sythia’s chest. This bug was crazy. What was she even saying? Casting a side glance at Hornet, she saw she had her needle raised and was bracing herself in anticipation.

The small moth frowned, antenna quivering. Nothing she was saying was getting through and the lady beetle could tell she was running out of things to say.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the Pale King walking up to the grounded light. She groaned inwardly. He could only make things worse.

“Forcing bugs to obey your will is not the actions of a higher being. You are being irrational, do not make us cut you down.” His tone was dire.

Sythia couldn’t believe what she was hearing.

A weak beam of light erupted from the Radiance’s body. The pale bug only had to step out of the way to avoid it, though his knights moved forward with weapons readied.

“SILENCE, WYRM! DO NOT SPEAK OF ME!” Her voice echoed in the cavern and her fur raised in rage. She attempted to struggle free again, keeping her burning glare focused on the King. 

The vessels all widened their stance. The tendrils didn’t seem to be capable of holding the bright bug’s body down for much longer. Sythia swallowed. If all of the vessels were as merciless as she knew Rose to be, they would not hesitate to kill the Radiance. Taking a step back, her stomach turned again. 

The sound of clattering stone drew her attention from the writhing bug. Behind the commotion, a tall bug pulled themself up. The remaining white armour that clung to their shoulders slipped off as they steadied themselves, their usual pale grey cloak stained with dust and dirt, frayed and torn at the ends. The Hollow Knight had stood up and they were staggering over to the other vessels, using their nail to support themself. Now out of the shadows of the remains of the temple, Sythia could see the extent of their broken shell. It had been chipped away at the top and a bold crack ran through their right eye, leaking a rich black substance. Slowly and rather painfully, they dragged themselves to the front of the struggling light. As she saw them, she narrowed her eyes.

“You cannot cut me down, void. I do not fear you.” Her voice was tired. 

Even if she managed to break free, the smaller vessels were still filled with energy and if he decided, the King’s knights would make quick work of the Radiance in her sorry state. Despite being the source of the infection, a small flicker of sympathy momentarily sparked in Sythia’s chest. To strike her down while she was already pinned was cruel, but even she had to admit, if it was the only way to rid Hallownest of the infection, they had no other choice. 

Sythia watched as the Hollow Knight looked at the Radiance, eyes empty and emotionless. The other vessels watched, waiting. The bright bug had stopped struggling, staring directly into the eyes of the Hollow Knight. Her breath stopped as the tall vessel dropped their nail. It clattered to the ground with a metallic echo, rendering the whole cavern silent. The other vessels exchanged glances. The two horned vessel was the first to stand down as well, replacing their small nail on their back and the others followed suit. 

“Why?” The Radiance sounded bewildered. “Why do you stand down? Do you not understand? I will destroy you.”

The Hollow Knight tilted their head.

“You, you are my enemy. You cannot show me mercy!” The light rose as the tendrils holding her down loosened their grip. Sythia half expected her to resume her attack but she only hovered above the vessels, looking on in confusion. Her light had softened considerably.

“Radiance,” the purple moth stepped forward again, “we do not want to cut you down. I do not want to forget you. Release the bugs from your hold, the moths will remember you. I will make sure of it.” Her voice was a plea.

The Radiance was silent for a moment, but the anger did not return to her eyes. “It is impossible, the bugs of this kingdom will scorn me for what I have done.”

“They do not need to know.” Sythia blinked as she heard the words. The Pale King had moved closer to the Radiance and was holding out his hand to the larger bug. “I will ensure they never find out, if you agree to lift your plague.”

She narrowed her eyes, anger returning to her. “Why would you help me, Wyrm?”

“I am not doing this for you. If this is what it takes to free the bugs from the infection, I am willing to accommodate you.” There was no friendliness in his bargain yet no hostility either.

She glared a moment more, and Sythia could hear her heart thumping in her head. The Radiance blinked once. “Very well, but I shall show no mercy if you deny me this.” Addressing the moth, she continued. “Do not forget me, child, and I shall provide my light to your kind as I used to.” She then turned back to the Hollow Knight, sharing a final look before she disappeared in a flash of golden light. 

Sythia blinked, and then she breathed. All the tension that had built up in her body was suddenly released and she found herself blurting out, “It’s over? Just like that?”

She was knocked slightly off balance as a small bug crashed into her legs. Looking down, she saw Rose clinging to her in their usual way. She hadn’t even noticed them running over to her. Sythia couldn’t suppress the mix of relief and happiness that swelled inside her chest and she lifted the little bug, holding them an arms length away from her. “You little menace, now you’re clinging to me again?”

Rose struggled in her grip, jumping to the ground. They puffed out their chest and waved their glaive around proudly. Sythia’s antennae twitched in amusement and she knelt down, playfully rubbing the vessel’s head, interrupting their victory pose. She was still somewhat confused as to what she had just witnessed but Rose was here, and they were in one piece. At this point she couldn’t bring herself to care about anything else and honestly, she didn’t want to think about it anymore.

A hand on her back brought her attention up. Hornet was still standing beside her, she had been this whole time. The spider wasn’t directly looking at her, instead watching the vessels who were still gathered by the ruined temple, but she was smiling slightly “It worked, out did it not?”

Sythia smiled in response, looking back down at Rose. “Yeah.”

-

The Pale King blinked, looking at the space where the Radiance had been. Could he trust her to hold up her half of their deal? He would have to. But still, he had not expected the Hollow Knight to have shown mercy. They were meant to be void, mindless. At the first sight of her they should have attacked. Looking over at the vessels, he saw two of them jumping around, waving their nails in the air. They were celebrating. The other one, the one with two horns, was looking up at the Hollow Knight. The Pale King knew something about this vessel was different from the others. They were not pure, yet they seemed emptier than the Hollow Knight themself. He had seen it, the way the void that had made up the black egg had moved to their will. To have controlled the void, how had this vessel done such a thing?

A plethora of questions swarmed in his mind at this moment. None of which he had the energy to answer. He had a lot of work waiting for him in the aftermath of this event. The sound of his knights conversing echoed behind the wyrm but he didn’t register exactly what they were saying. He could hear Ogrim and Isma. They sounded excited but Dryya had said something back in a rather solemn tone, Hegemol had agreed but the dung beetle laughed it off happily. They didn’t seem to be asking any further questions, happy with the outcome of this ordeal. Yet still, turmoil buzzed in his chest. He had only noticed it now, but the Hollow Knight was staring right at him.

They attempted to stagger forward, but fell over in their attempt. The break in their shell was how the Radiance had escaped from where she was bound, though he had no idea how the vessels managed to free her. The Hollow Knight had betrayed him, they had ignored his orders and had acted on their own accord. Despite what he had thought, despite all the other vessels that had been sacrificed, the Pure Vessel was not completely hollow. The revelation was a difficult one. If he had sealed them away in the black egg, they would have not been able to contain the infection. How could he have made such a mistake?

Moving towards the grounded vessel, the King observed them in their sorry state. They could barely move like this. What had happened to the kingsoul charm he had given the knight? The limitless soul it contained should have provided enough energy for them to heal themself at this point. Sighing, he held out his hand, placing it gently against the vessel’s forehead. They closed their eyes as he did so. His own light was the light of soul, he had plenty to share and it seemed as if the Hollow Knight was in dire need of some. 

As the Pale King moved his hand away, the knight opened their eyes. Their bearings were already more stable and they stood up, bowing to him in thanks. The wyrm stared at the child standing before him. Their eyes seemed as empty as ever and yet they contained a will of their own. What was he meant to do now, after having treating them so coldly?

Movement at the feet of the Hollow Knight drew his attention. The two horned vessel was staring right at him and he blinked. There was something else odd about this child. They bore his own glowing mark, the king’s brand. There was only one place a vessel could acquire that mark, and another long sealed door that it opened. He would need to check the door to the Abyss at some point. There was no doubt that this little vessel had been at the center of this whole plan. Should he be thankful or mad? He could not quite wrap his head around how a single vessel could have done this on their own, and yet it had been done. Looking now to the two others who were still running around each other, he sighed. The palace was large enough for another three bugs.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I may or may not have horrible time perception and complete missed that it was Wednesday.
> 
> It's late but here it is.


	15. Chapter 15

The Pale King had been working tirelessly since he had returned to the palace, sorting out a public decree to explain away the commotion the Radiance had caused. Bugs in both Dirtmouth and the Crossroads had felt the tremors and unrest had grown since. Though reports of the recovery of infected bugs had also been consistently coming in. It seemed like the Radiance had held up her half of their deal.

Leaning back in his chair, he let out an exhausted sigh. He had told that oversized moth he would not tell a soul about her misdeeds, yet that was proving difficult; there were a select few bugs that already knew, namely the dreamers. It would be a challenge in itself to explain to them how this had all happened. Before all that, there was another matter he needed to deal with, one that shouldn’t take too long but he dreaded it nonetheless. A knock on the door to his study alerted him to his anticipated visitor.

“Enter.”

A lady beetle strolled in, rather relaxed, her tiny void companion trotting close by her side. She didn’t offer a bow of any sorts but he had become used to that by now, the wyrm had become more tolerant of her disrespect after the revelation that she was not going to change the way she acted any time soon.

“Is there something you wanted from me? This is the first time you’ve called me here.” Sythia was scanning the study with intrigue in her eyes, eyeing the patterns on the walls and ceiling, not particularly paying attention to him at all.

Standing. the Pale King narrowed his eyes, she could at least look at him while she spoke. “As you well know, the affliction with the infection has been resolved. As such, I do not have any further reason to keep your vessel or you in the palace.”

She blinked. “You’re kicking us out?”

“Not particularly.” He looked at the small vessel staring directly at him. The other three children he had brought back seemed much more accustomed to life in the palace. Most of the time they did what they wanted, causing trouble yes, but nothing the palace guards couldn’t handle. Yet this one was much more concerned with the lady beetle they were clinging to than their other siblings. And the lady beetle in question had made it clear how she disliked being here. “You have been officially registered as a palace knight and though your obedience certainly is an issue, the two of you are not completely of no use to me.”

“So?” She tilted her head, he didn’t know if she was being serious or if she just wanted him to say it.

Withholding a sigh, the wyrm elaborated. “If you are willing to take your duties seriously, you can remain in the palace. Of course, all of my knights have breaks where they can return to their homes. Or you can resign and leave.”

“What about Rose?” Sythia placed a hand on the vessel’s head.

“I have no further reason to hold that child here. You are welcome to take them with you in whatever you decide.”

“Then I’m going home.”

No hesitation. 

The Pale King had suspected she would want to leave. It would be a shame to lose a bug with so much potential, yet if she was not willing to properly obey his orders or the orders of her superiors, she would be quite a waste of resources. A part of him wanted to rise up to the challenge and shape her into a loyal palace knight but now wasn’t the time for that. Even so, he hesitated to retrieve the Hallownest seal the beetle had produced from her cloak. She was holding it out to him, waiting for the King to take it from her. Slowly but surely, he did retrieve it from her claws.

“If you change your mind, you are welcome to reapply for the position. I am more than ready to invest in skilled bugs who are determined to fight for Hallownest,” The wyrm found himself adding as he placed the seal down on his desk.

She smiled slyly. “Not really my thing, I’m afraid. Though I suppose there may be a face or two I’ll miss, I’d rather not.” 

The lady beetle turned to leave, her vessel following suit but as she reached the door, she paused. Turning, with a mischievous smile, she gave a small bow of her head, yet again her vessel mimicking the movement. And then she was gone. The Pale King narrowed his eyes. There really was no respect from that bug.

-

“Ogrim, Isma!” Sythia bounded over to where the knights she had come to respect were standing. They had been watching over the three vessels the King had brought back from the Crossroads, but looked towards her as she called out to them. Rose ran off towards the other vessels as they saw them, leaving Sythia to speak with the knights on her own.

“Sythia.” Isma smiled, giving her a wave.

“Rose and I are leaving,” She exclaimed, excited to get back to the lush caverns she called home.

“Oh.” The smiles of the two bugs faltered slightly. 

“I suppose I saw this coming.” The smaller knight sighed. “You seem happy though, I am glad for you.”

Sythia could feel affection welling up inside her and she couldn’t stop the smile on her face from growing. “Thank you both, for everything.”

She was caught off guard as Ogrim pulled her in for a rather tight hug, struggling in his grasp for a second before accepting her fate. He placed her down and she took a small step back, patting down her ruffled clothes.

“I know it is what you’ve decided, but you have been such a noble friend. I will miss you.” Sythia could have sworn he was tearing up.

“Me too.” She didn’t want to admit she would miss any part of the palace, yet Ogrim and Isma had shown her nothing but kindness and it was unlikely she would see them again. Sythia returned his hug with a pat on the arm. 

“If you are leaving, then I would like you to have this.” The dung beetle showed her the small, clay figure of Aluba, still looking very messy but she found she liked to look at it.

“You were just walking around with this?” Sythia questioned through a mischievous smile, taking the idol from his claws.

“He wanted to give it to you.” Isma added for her companion. “We had planned to find you after this.”

The lady beetle found herself smiling again. “Thank you, again.”

“Now then, there is no reason for us to keep you here.” The leaf skirted bug brought her hands together. “I’m sure you are eager to leave.”

“Farewell friend.” Ogrim place a claw on her shoulder.

Waiting for him to move away, she gave them both a friendly goodbye and waved Rose over. The small vessel nodded to the others before running over to her, giving a final wave to Ogrim and Isma she was on her way.

The halls of the palace echoed with the sound of footsteps as she briskly walked, Rose close by her side as they always were. Sythia didn’t take an extra moment to stop and appreciate the pale flowers or take in the intricate architecture she had become familiar with, feeling a surge of impatience and anticipation. She would be home soon, it would be different without Aluba and that would be hard to explain to Nymph but in time everything would go back to how it was.

Slowing her pace, the lady beetle thought for a second. She had wanted to bid farewell to Hornet. The spider wasn’t always at the palace and she hadn’t seen much of her since what had happened at the Crossroads. Sythia had tried to find her but she didn’t seem to be here, perhaps she would have some luck if she searched Deepnest, though that didn’t appeal to her much. If she left without saying goodbye, would the princess even care? Shaking away the thought, she returned to her brisk pace. Hornet knew where to find her, if the spider wanted to see her again, she would. 

Before she realised it, the lady beetle had come to the palace gates. All she had to do now was cross that bridge into the Ancient Basin and reach the city and she would officially be out. For some reason the thought made nerves flutter within her. Casting a glance to Rose, the little vessel stared back, eyes deep and black. They then gave her a reassuring pat, nudging her on. Rose was right, there was no point in lingering. Continuing on, she walked into the front courtyard. The guards watched her as she left but Sythia didn’t pay attention to them. And then she stopped. The bug she had been searching for was standing on the white stone bridge, needle in hand, silk draped around her feet.

“Hornet?” Sythia ran up to her, Rose at her heels. “I was looking for you.”

“I heard you were leaving. It would be easier to talk here so I waited.” Hornet’s voice was as sleek as ever.

“Yes, we’re returning to Greenpath.” The lady beetle cast a small glance to Rose as she said this and they nodded in response. “I wanted to thank you.”

Hornet blinked but her tone didn’t change. “For what?”

How would she say this? Hornet had been a good friend throughout her stay, if they were friends that is. “For making sure I didn’t get myself killed.” she decided on.

“I see, though you do not need to thank me for that.”

Sythia hummed, “Even though you could have just left me be. It wasn’t in your orders to make sure I was safe.” She was being mischievous now but she couldn’t help it when faced with the pale faced spider.

“I do not always follow orders as strictly as you seem to think I do.” The spider tilted her head, smiling ever so slightly with the movement.

“Is that so?” 

The lady beetle leaned in closer out of instinct from her days of teasing Nymph. Usually the little mosskin would groan and push her away but Hornet only seemed somewhat surprised, widening her eyes slightly. Taking a step back, Sythia averted her gaze and cleared her throat. 

“Thanks anyway.” She muttered scratching the side of her face.

Sythia heard the spider huff, and watched her turn away. “Then I shall see you at a later date.”

“What?” The word fell out of her mouth before she could stop herself.

“You owe me a sparring match if I am correct.” She turned her head to look at Sythia.

How good was this bug’s memory? “I suppose I do.”

With that, Hornet walked away. Sythia stood, watching her leave, bringing a hand to scratch the back of her head. That could have gone worse. Looking down, she found Rose staring, eyes wide and hands brought up to the bottom of their head. Embarrassed, the lady beetle placed a hand on the top of the vessel’s head, rubbing it with such force they lost their balance.

-

It had been quite the hasty walk and her tense legs were exhausted, but Sythia found herself at the brink of Greenpath. The smell of acid and plants wafted from the path ahead of her and the lady beetle found herself hesitating a moment. It had felt like forever since she had last been here. Were the mosskin who had been infected better now or had they succumbed before the Radiance could be stopped? Had they missed her? Taking a breath, she walked forward. She had come through the Fog Canyon, and the sound of swirling mist and the jelly like bugs faded behind her in exchange for rustling and chirping. Here it was thick with moss and foliage, a mass of winding tunnels and acid pools. They were familiar, and she felt more at ease than she had in a while. 

Rose was excited too, the vessel had run ahead. When the opportunity was there, they dove into a thicket of leaves, rustling around for a second before bursting back out covered in pollen and leaf scraps. Sythia chuckled as they pranced around in circles ahead of her, waving their glaive in the air.

“Alright you, we can do that later. Let’s just get home for now.”

The small bug seemed to think about that for a while, ultimately agreeing, returning to her side but walking with a very noticeable bounce in their step.

After walking for some time, they came into a much wider cavern. The air here was clearer and when Sythia looked up, she could see maskflies overhead, perching here and there on the rocks and fluttering across the ceiling. More plants were growing here; brambles in thick patches in the corners and flowers and herbs in the cracks of the wall and floor, filling the air with a fragrant aroma. Most noticeably, she could smell the thick aroma of rosemary. Rose had taken this opportunity to run ahead again heading, heading right for the thin leafed, purple flowered bloom. Sythia’s pace had slowed significantly as she enjoyed the welcoming sounds and humid air Greenpath brought. The feel of mossy stone under her claws and the sounds of creeping feet and beating wings had never been more welcome. Sythia paused for a second to close her eyes and just listen.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And with that, it has been completed!  
Thank you for all your support on this!!   
All the comments have been so kind and fun to read. I'm really happy that you enjoyed this little story I decided to impulsively write.


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